Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/
works/5291267.
  Rating:
      Explicit
  Archive Warning:
      Graphic_Depictions_Of_Violence, Underage
  Category:
      M/M
  Fandom:
      EXO, Sekai_-_Fandom, KaiHun_-_Fandom, Sehun_-_Fandom, Kai_-_Fandom, EXO_
      (Band)
  Relationship:
      Sekai_-_Relationship, KaiHun, SeKaiHun_-_Relationship, Kim_Jongin_|_Kai/
      Oh_Sehun
  Character:
      Oh_Sehun, Kim_Jongin_|_Kai
  Additional Tags:
      Mutant, Romance, Underage_-_Freeform, Student-Teacher, Teacher-Student
      Relationship
  Series:
      Part 1 of PRODIGIALIS
  Stats:
      Published: 2015-11-26 Completed: 2017-05-11 Chapters: 53/53 Words: 158259
****** Lusus Naturae ******
by Hyperionova
***** Foreword *****
Chapter Summary
     In which Sehun is born with occult and power to bend weather. His
     atmokinetic Flair strikes him a ticket to the most prestigious mutant
     academy in the world—Flairers' Academia. At the age of 17, his powers
     become even more difficult to administer and the only solution his
     very mundane parents could come up with is to send him to a school
     where their son would fit in best. One of the many quandaries that
     Sehun is forced to face in Flairers' Academia is the fact that he
     holds the weakest Flair when compared to the rest of his schoolmates
     who bend Flairs such as time, space, thoughts, so on and so forth.
     But his biggest predicament gremlin which he has to face in every
     Combative Defense Arts class is his dogmatic, pedagogue, roguish,
     arrogant, aggressive instructor Kim Kai who specializes in Superhuman
     Agility.
                                     * * *
                                     CAST
                                        
                                   OH SEHUN
As someone who has lived under the protection of his room for almost 17 years,
 Sehun is finally free. He has a choice to make now. Whether to remain in the
  world which he doesn't belong in, which is more dangerous than anyone could
foresee or to live the way he wants to—liberated and with contentment. As soon
  as he steps into the school of his dreams, he realizes that he is not that
  special after all when he stands among hundreds of people who outshine him.
                                        
                                        
                                      KAI
 At the age of 29, he gets as crude and merciless as he can manage. Being the
 instructor of the Combative Defense Arts class, he is required to be a severe
and an uncompromising coach in order to bend and snap his students into shape.
 This is where the Flairers can learn to control their Flairs. But even as an
 instructor, Kai struggles to keep his own Flair in check as he has excellent
 flexibility, matchless jumping capacity and meteoric reaction time. There is
always one black sheep in his perfect class. This year, it is first year's, Oh
                                    Sehun.
                                        
                                        
                                        
                                 PARK CHANYEOL
One of the first true friends Sehun makes who, beneath all the nonchalance, is
             one of the very few people who truly care for Sehun.
                                        
                                        
                                     KRIS
   Your typical 22 years old frat boy who looks crude on the outside, but is
 nothing but a softie on the inside. He develops a complicated set of feelings
                             for his new roommate.
                                        
                                        
                                        
               More characters to be introduced in the future. 
***** The Beginning *****
It’s a world he did not belong in. The mundane world. The prosaic world. The
perishable world. A world that was subjected to destruction, hatred, war,
disrelish, callousness and darkness. That was how he saw it. Dark. A very
vulnerable, assailable world. This was the world he was born into. This was the
world he did not fit in. This was the world that would turn against him when it
knew he was an Alien within it. This was the world that would not think twice
before it would quell him. He was not the only Alien here. He was one of the
very few. An Alien with the capital A.
His hand tightened around the handle of his luggage. The honks and hoots around
the station deafened his ears as he squeezed through the gaps of the heaps of
people that congested the place. He took occasional shoves and bumps, but kept
his eyes fixated on the number 3 platform. ‘Number 3. Number 3.’ Relentlessly
repeating it as a mantra in his head, he tried to keep his attention away from
the crowd that was ready and about to mangle him. Possibly trample him if it
knew he was capable of spinning a tornado. Even this thick crowd could not
saturate the late morning fog that de-focused the world—just the way Sehun
loved seeing it. De-focused. Well, he was the reason behind the fog that
invaded the train station from the second he stepped foot into it. The sun
still shone brilliantly through the thin mist. Billions of infinitesimal icy
vaporised drops caressed Sehun’s face and the back of his neck as he coursed
through the crowd, dragging his heavy luggage behind him.
He stood out—often as a sore thumb, rarely as a scintillating star. At the age
of 5, he made it rain on the hottest day of the year. At the age of 7, he blew
a blizzard into his classroom when two of his classmates bullied him by
snapping his crayons. Fortunately for him, it was during winter. At the age of
15, he casted a dry spell and caused a momentary drought in just his
neighbourhood during autumn. By the age of 16, he was capable of causing
tropical, extratropical cyclones, waterspouts, snowstorms, thunderstorms, ice
storms, dust storms and severe droughts in his sleep. The frequent but periodic
changes in weather everywhere he went was as if tip-toeing on Hook’s plank. He
could fall at any moment. And when he did, he will bring his dark world down
with him.
“Number 3.” He sighed to himself, halting before the platform indicating board
and glanced around him at an attempt to locate his parents who arrived before
him in order to get him the necessities he’d need for his 7-hour journey. ‘Too
foggy.’ He thought and closed his eyes for a brief moment. When he opened them
again, the fog was lifting off the platform.
“Sehun!” his mother’s squawk raced past the crowd and Sehun spun around to meet
his mother struggling her way towards her son with her husband trying to keep
up. Sehun stifled a grin when he noticed the bags that were carrying water
bottles, snacks and books as his parents reached him. “Here.” She panted,
handing him the water bottles.
“Mom, I don’t need this many. There will be train stops.” He laughed, but
accepted the bottles.
“Oh, good. You reminded me. Don’t get off the train!” she rasped, shoving the
bag with the snacks into Sehun’s hand. “I don’t want you stranded somewhere.”
Sehun shook his head, flashing a lopsided grin before he turned to face his
father who handed him the train ticket. “Your mother’s right. Don’t
unnecessarily get off the train.” He said, placing a hand on Sehun’s shoulder.
“No. Don’t get off at all!”
“He’s 16, almost 17, honey. I’m sure he knows—”
“No.” She spat persistently and held onto Sehun’s leather jacket, straightening
it as her eyes brewed tears. “I heard that they only allow you to call home
once in a blue moon. So call us at every chance that you get, okay?”
“I will, mom.” Sehun curled an arm around his mother’s shoulders and held her
close. “Don’t worry. I’m going to be happy there, mom.”
“We know you will, son.” His father—although was a hard man—patted Sehun’s
shoulder. “Do you have your wallet? Your bank card? Your phone.”
“All here, dad.” He assured him, peering at the train that
was whoozing and hizzing on its tracks. As soon he boarded it, he would no
longer be an Alien with the capital A. He would be a Flairer.
A Flairer. Sounded way better than Freak.
“Make sure you find the right type of friends.” His mother urged him, still
clinging onto the leather jacket. “Don’t smoke. And don’t drink too much. If
you find a girlfriend, make sure she’s someone I would like and don’t… don’t do
anything with her that will disappoint us all. Be sure to use protection,
okay?”
Sehun felt the blood rush to his cheeks and paint them red. “Mom.” He muttered
with the back of his neck growing hot. If there were something that made Sehun
queasier than meat, it was the ever-so-awkward girlfriend slash sex talk.
“Oh, and if there are bullies there, complain to the authorities at once.”
“That’s enough, honey. He’s a tough boy now.” His father chuckled before
plunging a fist into Sehun’s stomach. Sehun flinched a little, but laughed it
off. “See! He has hard abs.”
Could his parents humiliate him anymore than this?
“And, Sehun.” his mother lowered her voice. “Try and keep your… powers under
control.” She cupped one of Sehun’s cheeks, swiping her thumb over his
cheekbone. “Remember. Whenever you’re close to losing it, count to ten, think
of happy things. Don’t stress yourself, sweetheart.” She stood on her toes to
press her lips onto Sehun’s forehead.
“I’ll try, mom.” He answered honestly.
The instant the announcement for departure went off, his parents took a step
back and Sehun took hold of his luggage again. His heart was thumping at his
throat now. If he were not so proud, he would have trembled hard now as he
approached the train’s opened door. His stomach shifted uneasily, but he liked
the feeling. Sehun, often as a general rule, hid his emotions and excitements.
But today, he could not conceal his grin no matter how hard he tried. He was
leaving this world for another. He was saying goodbye to this mundane world and
was about to welcome a world that would change his life forever.
“Sehun.” his mother called with her hand clasping Sehun’s elbow. When he turned
to face her, she smiled and leaned in to kiss his cheek. “Take care.”
“I will, mom. And you take care of yourselves.” He told them, pulling his
mother into a hug. His father smiled a man smile before he gave Sehun a man
hug. “I love you guys.” He embraced his mother one last time before turning to
the door.
“Ah damn it, man!”
“Shit, I’m sorry!” Sehun immediately apologized to the man he had bumped into
and bent down at once to pick up the guy’s duffel bag.
“It’s okay.” The guy yanked the bag’s strap from him and when Sehun
straightened back up, he acknowledged the guy’s irritated scowl with a frown.
“I’m…” the other guy ignored him altogether and stepped into the train.
“Sorry.” Sehun sighed and grabbed his own luggage before entering the train.
“Bye, mom. Dad.” He mumbled and smiled at them waving at him as he started
towards his compartment and seat. He struggled a little with the bottles and
snacks as he tried to check his seat number on the train ticket. 43. He halted
before the compartment and his shoulders sagged as his stomach shrivelled when
he spotted the same guy from earlier settling his bags and luggage above the
seat. Great. This had to be the best start.
Sehun silently entered the space and dropped his stuffs onto his seat before
flumping next to them and glanced out the window. The corners of his lips
instantly quirked into an excited beam when his parents waved at him. The beep
beep beep signalled the closing of the doors. Sehun almost lifted his hand to
wave back at his parents on the platform but then he froze when he realized the
guy was glaring at him with one of his hand resting on his luggage on in the
compartment above the seat. Sehun swallowed, scanning the guy from head to toe.
His dark hair complimented his dark eyes and perfectly-sculpted jawline. His
beige trench coat did his brown boots and blue jeans justice and he was
definitely taller than Sehun by an inch or so. But he still looked annoyed for
some odd reason. This was just outstanding. Sehun got to spend 7 hours with
this uptight jerk. The floor rumbled as the train began to move and Sehun
shifted his gaze back to his parents to wave at them one last time. He could
see his mother holding her muffler to her mouth as she waved her hand
frantically.
Sehun kept his eyes on them until they were out of the boundaries of his
vision, and so was the train station. Heaving a loud sigh, he slumped back
against the seat, still grinning like a madman. This was it. This day marked
his liberation. Peeling his jacket off, he adjusted his long-sleeved white t-
shirt before running his fingers through his dark sienna hair. He paused with
his hand still in his hair as his eyes locked with the stranger’s. The guy was
seated now, but he was staring at Sehun overt and plainly apparently. Sehun
licked his lips and cleared his throat, lowering his hand from his head. He
turned his attention to his things. Rising to his feet, he picked up the
luggage which weighed the weight of a corpse, and settled it above the seat as
slowly as he could. He’d rather have the man stare at his back than straight
into his eyes.
“What are you?”
He spun around at once and blinked vacantly at the guy. “Wh–what?”
“Where are you going?” the man leaned back on his seat and stretched his arms
over the top of the seat and crossed his legs.
“Uhm… That’s none of your business?”
Okay, Sehun. Not the best way to befriend a potential serial killer that you’re
about to spent half a day with.
The guy scoffed, finally smirking as he tossed his gaze out the window. “I knew
it.”
“Knew what?” Sehun asked, a little vexed himself.
“I’m Chanyeol.” The stranger extended his long arm and held his hand out. Sehun
raised a brow, giving the hand a cursory once-over. “Oh, come on. I might look
like a serial killer, but I really am not.”
Sehun gulped and quickly shook hands with Chanyeol before withdrawing his hand
at breakneck speed. Holy shit. I need to change seats.
“No, you don’t.” Chanyeol laughed and Sehun was taken over by paralysis for a
moment.
“Wh… excuse me?”
“Sit down, Sehun.”
“How do you know my name?!”
Chanyeol jerked his chin at the train ticket that was lying on the seat. Sehun
immediately grabbed it and shoved it into his pocket. “Right.” Chanyeol sighed
and started to dig into his coat before he pulled out a card. Sehun’s eyes
widened at the card and his heart stopped beating for a second. “Recognize
this?”
Of course I recognize it!
Sehun silently sank into his seat, gaping at the identity card which had the
words FLAIRERS’ ACADEMIA etched on top of it with Chanyeol’s picture and name
below it. PARK CHANYEOL. 27-11-1996.
“Oh my…” Sehun clasped a hand over his mouth to stop himself from gasping as
Chanyeol burst into laughter. “Oh my, oh my, oh my!” he fished his wallet out
and yanked his own ID card out. FLAIRERS’ ACADEMIA, picture, OH SEHUN, 12-04-
1998. “No way!” his stomach gurgled with exhilaration as he broke into a
guffaw. “Is that why you were looking at me like I’m some fish out of water?!”
“No!” Chanyeol laughed, but the laughter died out of the sudden. “Because you
thought I was an uptight jerk!”
Sehun’s smile faltered as his cheeks burned. “Oh. I… I didn’t mean… that.” He
murmured, scratching the nape.
“Nah, it’s cool.” He snorted.
“Let me guess. You’re… telepathic?”
“Yep. And you’re atmokinetic.”
Sehun could not help but grin. “Yes. I never knew I would ever meet a Flairer!
Especially not someone from where I live!”
“Me neither! Well, you’re the first I’ve met. But aren’t you a little too young
to join FLAC, though? 16.”
Sehun pursed his lips to stop himself from smiling. “I’m turning 17 in another
couple of months. I was accepted nevertheless.” He shrugged.
“You must be a special case then. I heard that the training and lessons there
are… hardcore. Thus, the age limit.”
“Oh.”
“Anyway, when did you realize that you have these powers?!”
“My parents realized it first. When I was 7. And you?”
“I’ve always known. It’s not really a bliss having every single thought that
people around me had in their minds in my own mind. But I learned how to
control it and focus it on certain people.”
“Wow.” Sehun let out, smiling again. “I still can’t believe I just met someone
like me.”
“Well, you probably would have met a hundred like you tomorrow.”
“Yes, still.” He chuckled. “You can literally say what I’m thinking about right
now?”
Chanyeol nodded. “Actually, sometimes it’s a little hazy ‘cause people often
have mixed thoughts. I can’t see what they’re thinking or dreaming when they’re
asleep. But when you’re thinking something straight, yes, I can tell what
you’re thinking about.”
“Okay, okay.” Sehun clenched his fists and thought of the first time he had
taste a burger.
Chanyeol chortled and scoffed a little. “Your first burger was made of
soymeal?! That’s not a proper burger.”
“Hey! I’m vegetarian.”
“Ah. I see.”
Shit. He knows everything that I’m thinking. I must avoid thinking about things
that I don’t want him to know of at all costs. Sehun brought his fingers to his
mouth and began to gnaw on the cuticles. At least he won’t know what I’m
dreaming about. Because it will be awkward as hell if I had a wet dream. The
last thing Sehun needed for Chanyeol to know was him wanking to blokes.
Chanyeol went still as his eyes bulged out and Sehun stiffened when he realized
what had just happened. “Umm…” Chanyeol rubbed the back of his neck and cleared
his throat before pulling his coat off. Sehun sat mortified as still as a
statue, turning as red as a beetroot and radiated heat like a hot pan, wanting
to bury himself right there and then. “I won’t read your thoughts again, don’t
worry. I swear.” He tried to laugh but it sounded dead to Sehun. “Oh my god,
Sehun. You look like a flippin’ tomato!” this time Chanyeol’s laugh was genuine
and he was convulsed with laughter.
Sehun raised his hands to his face and tried to hide his embarrassing blush
behind his chalky-white slim fingers. “This never happened.” He whispered.
Chanyeol laughed harder, holding onto his stomach. “Oh man! This is hilarious!
Okay. All right. My lips are zipped. Your darkest secret is safe with me. But
hey, you know what they say. First impressions last.” He was doubled up again,
dissolved into his guffaw.
“Can I just die…” he hung his head as low as he could, clenching his eyes shut.
 
 
 
As soon as the academia’s cab came to a stop, Sehun and Chanyeol both exited at
it simultaneously, but Sehun was brought to a stock-stillness as he gazed at
the monumental castle that stood before him, welcoming him with opened arms—or
in this case, with opened footbridges and barbicans. “Oh wow.” He exhaled,
gawking at the pinnacles of the towers the old castle preened on. The academia
was probably located in the most isolated area on Earth that was still
accessible. It was surrounded by thick and almost impenetrable forests. There
were red carpets and banners everywhere to welcome new students. Sehun glanced
over at the boy who was playing with fire—literally playing with fire in his
hand, entertaining the girls he was surrounded by. The entire ground outside
was filled with people, but none of them, except with the fire-guy, seemed like
they were Flairers.
“Hey?” Chanyeol’s voice snapped Sehun’s thoughts. “This isn’t Hogwarts.” He
scoffed. “It’s a school where we have to maintain a low profile.”
Sehun curtly nodded and hurried to get his bags. The cab fare was apparently
paid by the academia and Sehun knew it was the academia which had sent them the
cab since the cab driver himself came up to them as soon as they had exited the
train station. “What about that guy, then?” Sehun muttered under his breath as
they started towards the footbridge.
“A show-off that wants to rut those chicks.” He shrugged. “You look tired.”
“I am tired.” Sehun sighed. He had not bothered to even catch a wink as he
stayed up throughout the journey, talking to Chanyeol. So, now, Chanyeol
probably knew more things about Sehun than his own parents. “It’s cold.”
“It’s almost spring.” Chanyeol draped an arm around Sehun’s shoulders.
“Welcome, welcome!” the girl at the entrance screeched, halting them on their
paces. She was dressed in a red polo shirt just as some of the others that
roamed the area. “Welcome to FLAC! May I see your IDs?”
Sehun yanked his out and held it out before Chanyeol did the same. “Hi.” He
smiled. “I’m Sehun.”
“Hevalin Tonegard.” She introduced herself with a courtesy bow which made Sehun
snicker. “But you can call me Heva. I’m in the third year, specialising in
Communications.”
“Ah. I’ll be majoring in Communications in my third year as well.” Chanyeol
said, shaking hands with her.
“Oh dear. Are you telepathic?”
A smirk formed on Chanyeol’s lips. “Why are you hoping that I’m not?”
Heva’s cheeks coloured. “I wasn’t…” she twirled a lock of her lustrous brunette
hair around her forefinger. “Well, I talk to animals. Zoolingualism.”
“That sounds just as exciting as you are.”
Heva bit her lip and retreated a step. “Go ahead. Suho will guide you through
your registration.”
“Thank you, Heva.” Sehun said and received Heva’s unusually pleasant smile in
return before they walked forward. “Were you hitting on her?!” he hissed,
nudging an elbow into Chanyeol’s arm.
“She was hitting on me first.” He whispered, glancing back at her. Sehun
quickly turned his own head and noticed Heva deliberately looking away,
pretending to be welcoming other kids. “She legit thought I was hot.”
“God. You’re a dangerous guy. I need to lock my thoughts away.”
“You’ve already let on too much, Sehun.” he patted on Sehun’s back. “There’s
nothing for you to lock away.”
“Hello!” both Sehun and Chanyeol were startled by the red-polo-shirted guy who
was holding a clipboard in his hands. “Freshmen?”
“I’m guessing you’re Suho.” Chanyeol chimed.
“Yep.” He shook hands with Chanyeol first before turning to Sehun. “Names?”
“Oh Sehun and Park Chanyeol.”
Suho quickly ran through the list and checked something. “All right. Chanyeol,
you’ll room with underclassman Baekhyun, who has not arrived yet, in Tower N,
floor nine, room three.”
Sehun was not going to admit it, but he was slightly disappointed that he was
not going to room with the only guy he knew here.
“And, Sehun. Tower E, floor five, room two.” Suho pointed at the east tower.
“You’ll be rooming with upperclassman Kris. And that’s Kris.”
Sehun’s eyes darted to the other red-shirted guy who was approaching them. For
a very short moment, Sehun’s breath hitched. The guy—Kris, looked like he had
jumped off some fashion show runway. His blonde hair was spiked although it
looked a little too long to be spiked and his jeans were sagging by his hips.
He smiled at Sehun once he caught him staring. Or more like drooling. “I heard
someone say my name.” his voice… Sehun blinked slow, staring at the man like he
was the last piece of candy.
“Kris, this is your new roommate, Sehun.” Suho introduced.
“Oh, great. Hey, I’m Kris.” He stuck his hand out and Sehun stared at it for a
moment. His fingers were long. Too long. But beautiful. And probably strong.
Sehun clasped hands with him and confirmed his theory. His fingers were strong.
“You can come with me. I’ll show you up.”
Sehun slowly nodded. “Okay.”
He took it back. He was not one bit disappointed that he was not rooming with
Chanyeol.
“Oh my god, you sly bitch.” Chanyeol hissed and Sehun shrugged before picking
up his bags and hurried after Kris.
“Come on.” Kris stopped to take Sehun’s luggage.
“No, it’s okay.”
“Please, I insist.” He smiled and led Sehun up the stairs which was lit by
torches. “Most of this school is rusty, I should warn you. It’s all to maintain
the intrinsic value of this castle.” His voice echoed just as his heavy
footsteps as they walked up the steps that went in swirls. Sehun wondered how
Chanyeol was going to climb nine flights of stairs. But each flight of the
staircase was relatively short. Sehun licked his lips, trying to keep his eyes
off Kris’ back and rear but failed miserably. Wonderful. He was already ogling
his roommate on the first day itself. “I heard that you’re 16.”
“Almost 17.” Sehun reasoned.
“Yeah. You’re still the youngest here.”
“What? Really?”
“Yeah.”
“How… old are you?”
“22.”
“Oh.”
“What happened to your old roommate? I’m guessing that you had one.” Sehun
changed the topic. He really did not appreciate being treated as the baby or
the runt in the group.
“Yes, I did. Well, being a Flairer has its perks and cons.” He looked back at
Sehun for a short second before continuing up the stairs. The cold damp air
wrapped around Sehun like a heavy coat of chain mail as he ascended the tight
spiral staircase. He averted his gaze to the flaming torches instead of
undressing his eyes over Kris’ ass. “Sorry, this is rather tedious.”
“It’s okay.” I am very much enjoying the sight from back here. “So, what
happened to your roommate?”
“Oh. He’s one of the sprinters. He… accidentally ran into a wall. And he died.”
Sehun stopped on the step and Kris looked back before he stopped as well.
“You’re… joking, right?”
Kris laughed. “No. Why would I joke about something like that?”
Sehun was not sure if he should laugh with Kris or present his condolences.
That was by far the funniest and saddest story he had ever heard. “I’m… sorry.”
He decided to say.
“Yeah. We all are. Poor chap.” Kris proceeded up and Sehun followed in silence
until they reached the room. Kris unlocked the wooden door which did not look
like it had a lock on. Sehun frowned at it. “Sorry. Boys’ quarters’ policy. No
locks.”
“Why not?”
“Because fuck gender equality.” Kris chuckled and pushed the door open.
 “That’s my bed.” He pointed at the bed on the right before pointing at the
opposite one on the left. “That’s yours.” He dragged the luggage to the bed and
let it sit on the side. Sehun scanned the room. It looked like any dorm. Only
really old-school. The floorboards creaked as he stepped in. “You have your own
wardrobe.” Kris said as he pulled the curtains open, letting some light in.
Sehun opened the wardrobe at the left and coughed a little at the dust.
“Now.” Kris held a hand out and Sehun blankly blinked. He curled and
straightened his fingers, gesturing Sehun to give him something.
“Oh.” Sehun quickly dug his back pocket, scavenging for some coinage. “I don’t…
have change.”
Kris croaked out a chuckle. “Dude, I’m not asking for a tip. Hand your phone
over.”
“What?”
“School policy. It’ll be in the office and you can claim it whenever you’re
going off school grounds.”
“Oh.” He sighed and fished his phone out before switching it off and handed it
over to Kris.
“Do you have any other electronic stuff?”
“I have my laptop.”
“Then, that too.”
Sehun clenched his jaw as he rummaged through his luggage. “It’s not like you
people have Wi-Fi anyway.”
“You’re here now, you’re one of us. You don’t act like Pootles anymore.”
Sehun rose to his full height after grabbing the laptop. “Pootles?” he cringed.
“Yeah. The spoiled, normal humans.”
With a frowning tugging the corners of his lips down, Sehun shoved the laptop
into Kris’ chest. “My parents are Pootles.”
Kris tittered and saluted Sehun with two of his fingers as he retreated back to
the door. “Take some rest. You’d want to look your best at the orientation
tomorrow morning. All the kids here have some serious I-Am-The-Mighty
syndrome.”
“And you?”
“Oh, I do, too. I just go easy on the first years on their first day.”
Sehun’s face pulled into a deeper frown. “I haven’t gotten my schedule.”
“You’ll get it tomorrow at the orientation and you’ll get to meet your
teachers. I think you’re getting Shark this year as your CDA master. That’d
ought to be fun.” He grinned.
“What’s CDA?”
“Combative Defence Arts.”
“Shark?”
“You’ll see. Sleep tight.”
“When will you be back?”
“I still have to get 50 other students into the dorms, Mr Oh. Good night.” He
pulled the door close and Sehun stood in the middle of the room with his heart
sinking into his stomach.
“Good night.” He murmured to himself before dropping onto the bed.


Chapter 3: Definite Truth
The uproarious cheers and clamours from the assembly hall resounded through the
hallways like frantic alleluias and Sehun could not help but guffaw along with
the other kids who were ushered towards the hall by the upperclassmen who were
all dressed in red and black fleece shirts today—both boys and girls. He woke
up in the morning to the streaks of sunlight penetrating the window until it
blinded him for a short moment. It had taken him a moment to realize that it
was the tolls of the academia’s bell was what had awoken him. Kris’ bed was
made neat and there was no sign of the guy either. Sehun doubted that Kris had
returned to the room at all last night.
“Good morning, Fish!” Sehun jumped a little when Suho appeared out of nowhere
with the most exciting grin etched on his face and threw his arm over Sehun’s
shoulders. “Slept well? Hey, hey, that way.” he directed another student to
take the hallway on the left. “So, it’s gonna be a pretty tough day. You’re
gonna need all your energy.” He patted on Sehun’s stomach and smirked. “Ooh.
You work out? That might help you with the hazing.”
Frowning, Sehun swallowed the lump in his throat. “Hazing? Do those things
happen here, too?”
“Of course. I had to jump around like a frog every Tuesday in my freshman
year.”
Sehun pursed his lips as his blood filled his cheeks. “What are we supposed to
do today?” he asked, fiddling with his ID card hanging around his neck.
“You’ll be introduced to your classes, instructors, professors and the Terror.”
“The… Terror?”
“The rules. Oh and let’s not forget about the Dignitary Ceremony.”
“What is that?” he frowned deeper.
“It’s just something the upperclassmen hold later at night where you freshmen
have to prove you’re worthy of FLAC.” He clapped a hand on Sehun’s shoulder as
they came to a stop at the crowd outside the hall. “Hey, get inside!” he
started to order the other fleece-shirted students to guide the freshmen into
the hall. Sehun silently wove his way into the assembly hall himself.
“Hey, Fish, this way.” Kris’ voice reverberated through the ear-splitting
cacophony of the hall before Sehun was hauled by the back of his shirt. He spun
around to meet Kris with a brutal scowl and tight chest. Kris flashed a smug
smile and handed the clipboard. “Sign.”
Sehun kept his scowl on as he snatched the pen from Kris to sign the attendance
list. “Don’t call me Fish.”
“Oh, don’t be too butthurt, Guppy. It’s just what we call all the freshmen. I
told you. We’re only nice on the first day.”
Guppy…
He did not sign up for this. “Take your seat. Oh, I wouldn’t sit next to
Porcupine if I were you.” he turned to entertain the student who followed after
Sehun.
“Who’s Porcupine?” he asked, but he did not get a reply for Kris. Heaving a
sigh, Sehun scanned the enormously vast hall which was only half-filled with
chairs to spot Chanyeol. The red drapes that hung on the walls were an accolade
to the ornate crystal and bronze chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and the
black podium that faced the hall’s entrance had straggles of fancy chairs,
which Sehun presumed were for the professors. His eyes landed on Chanyeol who
was settled in the second row and was conversing with Heva who was leaning over
the chair before him in the first row.
“Morning.” Sehun mumbled as he slid into the seat next to Chanyeol.
“Look who decided to show up!” Chanyeol snorted and ruffled Sehun’s hair at the
back of his head. “Sehun here is the biggest opportunist I’ve seen in my life,
you know, Heva?”
Sehun’s throat tightened and he fought the urge to punch Chanyeol in the guts.
“When does the orientation start?”
Heva checked her wrist watch at once as if out of habit. “In another five
minutes.”
Sehun nodded in reply and faced Chanyeol with a lour. “Has anyone called you
a Fish?”
Chanyeol’s brows rose. “No. Why?”
Sehun turned to Heva. “Suho and Kris just called me a Fish. Kris called me a
Guppy as well.”
Before Heva could respond, Chanyeol broke into a roaring laughter and Sehun
hung his head. “Well, maybe it’s because you’re the youngest around here.” said
Heva, chuckling herself.
“So, they’re harassing him because he’s 16?” Chanyeol scoffed.
“17.” Sehun corrected him and he shuddered when the screeching of the
microphone rang in his ears.
“Can I have your attention, students?” the middle-aged woman at the podium was
a woman in the autumn of her life. Deep wrinkle lines, which could not be
hidden by the copious amounts of makeup, graced her visage. Her pale, wrinkly
skin looked like discarded, wrinkled, paper bag left to itself. Still, there
was strength and wisdom in her emerald eyes and a proud carriage shown in her
jutting jaw line. Her back was stooped over as if she carried invisible weights
upon them. Her sliver hair was thinning, and her smile showed that her teeth
were rather yellow. Along with this, it could be seen that the lips, once
beautiful, were dry and cracked.
“I should go. Chanyeol, see you later?” Heva’s lips stretched into a shy smile
as she pulled her knee off the chair.
“Sure.” Chanyeol said subtly with a short grin but kept his eyes locked with
Heva’s as she walked away.
“Hell, you’re whipped.” Sehun chimed, prodding a finger into Chanyeol’s thigh.
“I really don’t want to be a jerk and read her mind, but I couldn’t help it.”
“What is she thinking about?” Sehun whispered as the microphone screeched again
and the doors were pulled closed.
“That’s for me to know and for you to find out.” He smirked. “How’s your
roommate?”
“He was non-existent last night. Yours?”
“Same here.” He snorted in incredulity. “He didn’t show up yesterday. They said
he’s a day late.”
“Oh.” He let out an exasperated breath, examining the podium on which the
teachers had begun to take their seats. There were at least twenty of them, all
ranging from 25 to 60 years old and equally distributed between men and women.
“Good morning, fellow students of Flairers’ Academia. Welcome to FLAC!” The
entire hall exploded with gold confetti and through the crowd there gushed a
startling band of colours which hung over the hall. Sehun almost rubbed his
eyes as the students drowned into ‘awes’ and ‘whoas’ with the rainbows arching
over the students. In moments the crowd that had been cheering for a win stood
silent, bereft when a sudden startling challenge of trumpets burst out of
nowhere.
“What the…” Sehun let out before giggling when some of the confetti fell on his
face.
“There.” Chanyeol jerked his head at the two students at the front that were
decorating the atmosphere of the hall with scintillating rainbows, oozing out
of their hands. “Light Flairers. They bend light.”
“Oh my god. It’s… beautiful.”
Chanyeol chuckled, brushing the confetti from Sehun’s head. “You are easily
impressed.”
“Well, I’ve lived in my hermit shell all my life. I never even had a birthday
party since I was 5.”
Chanyeol bit his lip and squeezed Sehun’s knee a little. “I’m sorry.”
The woman at the podium waved her hand and the trumpets went silent as the
students cut their connection to the rainbow streaks which quickly dissipated
into air. “I am Headmistress Dillan and I am very glad to welcome all you young
Flairers to our school for the gifted. As all of you should have been informed,
this semester you will be trained to administer your Flairs physically.
Although some of you might have mind-related Flairs, you would still need to
master them physically. Therefore, I am looking forward to you doing well in
this semester. At the end of it, you will have assessments and a private viva
voce with your respective professors and instructors.”
Sehun looked around the hall. Almost every chair was occupied and all of them
looked just as lost as he was. “Here you go, Guppy.” He looked up at Kris who
whispered, handing him a file. “Your schedules and rules.”
He muttered a “Thanks”, and kept his face away from Kris who smiled at him as
he walked past him, handing Chanyeol his file.
“Wow.” Chanyeol breathed out. “You’re already on bad terms? I thought you were
hitting on him yesterday?”
“Shh.” Sehun hissed. “I don’t know what his Flair is. I’ll be screwed if it’s
some super hearing.” He averted his eyes back to the headmistress who rambled
on about the academia’s history.
“Nah. That girl over there.” Chanyeol pointed at a blonde girl in the front
row. “She has super hearing, but I doubt that she’s listening to us right now.”
“What was Kris thinking?”
“He…” he looked like he was suppressing a laugh.
“What?”
“He thought you’re a tight-ass, arrogant, rich, spoiled brat. His thoughts, not
mine.”
Sehun’s face wilted immediately and he lowered his gaze. “Shit.”
“He’s also thinking about harassing and bullying you hard tonight at the
Dignitary Ceremony.”
“Great.” Rolling his eyes, Sehun flipped his file open. “I have Combative
Defence Arts first.”
“Oh. Me too!”
“Shh!”
“Sorry.” Chanyeol muttered, smirking at the student in the back row who
instantly blushed, lowering her head.
“You’re such a charmer. Can’t believe I thought you were some serial killer.”
Sehun chortled sotto voce, playfully elbowing Chanyeol’s ribs.
“It’s all in the genes.”
“And your student counsel’s chairman, I introduce you to Suho.” The
headmistress waved her hand at Suho who bowed with a wide Cheshire grin. “Vice
president, Kris Wu.” She pointed at the corner of the hall where Kris waved
frantically while handing out the students’ files and received a vigorous
amount of cheers and claps. Sehun shook his head, rolling his eyes again. “Our
school also provides you with different societies for you to join. I hope you
will find a society or two which interests you. There’s also a wide range of
tournaments for you to participate in. But for today, I want you to have a
great time at the welcome dinner and party. However, you will have to be
introduced to your classes today. I hope every single one of you would treat
this school as your home, rather than just an educational arena. And last but
not the least, I wish you all a good year here in Flairers’ Academia!”
As soon as the welcome speech had come to an end, Suho took over the podium.
“Good morning, underclassmen and underclasswomen. My name is Suho, I’m in third
year, majoring in Combative Defence Arts, Heat Vision Flairer and I’ve already
met most of you, I’m sure you remember me because this isn’t a face to forget.”
He giggled and Sehun scoffed out a laugh himself. “So the first two classes
this morning include Combative Defence Arts and Physical Thought Mastering. If
you could check your schedules, you’ll know which class you have this morning.
Those who have CDA, please follow Kris and those who have PTM, my mate Aaron
will be more than glad to direct you to your locales. As a part of your
orientation today, you will have to join us for the welcome dinner and after
party later tonight. And we require you to be here sharp at one o’clock for the
tour around the academia. Thank you.”
Sehun shot upright along with the others. “What power do you think Kris has?”
he asked Chanyeol as they wended their out of the hall.
“I don’t know. He didn’t think about it. Why don’t you ask him?”
“I don’t want to.” Sehun blurted out quickly when Kris showed up, gathering the
students.
 
 
 
“This is your CDA locale.” Kris announced as they entered the chamber.
“This looks like a freaking warehouse!” someone from the group squawked as
Sehun glanced around the place. There was a wrestling ring, several punching
bags and shelves that held all kinds of weapons except the gun kind.
“How… are we supposed to…” Sehun trailed off, gaping at the room. It looked a
training range for field agents and assassins. “Are we supposed to go to this
class?” he whispered to Chanyeol who seemed nonchalant as ever.
“Yeah, I guess.”
“Is there a problem?” Kris inquired and Sehun fell completely silent for a
second.
“What are we supposed to do in this class?” asked Chanyeol.
“You will be debriefed by your master.”
“The Shark.” Sehun sighed.
“Yes. The Shark!” the sudden yap erupted unexpectedly and all the heads turned
towards the entrance. Sehun’s heart swelled before it buried itself in his
stomach when he saw the man strut into the chamber. He had the kind of face
that would stop anyone in their tracks. His eyes fell directly on Sehun
followed by the overcompensating with a nonchalant gaze and locked jaw. The man
wore a loose black silk shirt with leather cuffs and black trousers. His rich
chocolate hair that had tousled griminess which promised finesse. He had
distinct cheekbones and an angular jaw, his tanned skin made him look
devilishly handsome. Sehun held his breath as the man edged closer. This close,
he could see the flecks of silver in his eyes. His guts turned into knots as he
tried to swallow. The man held Sehun’s gaze for a long moment with such
ferocity that stirred blood in Sehun’s lungs. His face was strong and defined,
his features moulded from granite. He had dark eye brows, which sloped
downwards in a serious expression. His perfect lips ripe for the kissing. His
jaw was lightly hinting a stubble, lined with almost invisible scruff. He was a
man around his late twenties, maybe. Sehun wondered if he could run and hide
somewhere to escape that hard glare which seemed inescapable right now.
“Good luck.” Sehun heard Kris whisper before he vamoosed out of there.
He pinned Sehun down with a couple more seconds of glowering before he marched
away. “My name is Kim Kai. Master Kai to you lot. I will be your Combative
Defence Arts instructor for the next six months.” He took his standing at the
front with his arms crossed over his chest. Sehun bit his lip when Kai looked
over again. “You are about to suffer for six months with this Shark.”
“You’re in deep trouble.” Chanyeol murmured as quiet as he could and Sehun felt
his throat burn with the lump of anxiety.
“I specialize in Superhuman Agility. I don’t care what your Flairs are or where
you’re from or what your parents do for a living. Here, you are my students and
you will play by my rules. I know that Dillan said that you can choose to join
tournaments but every single one of you will have to train to join the
Defensive Combat tournament this summer. Those who do not want to abide me, get
the fuck out of here and I will ultimately fail you in your final evaluation of
the term. I only come with three conditions. Don’t talk to me unnecessarily.
Don’t provoke me. And don’t be an idiot. Questions?”
It was so silent that one could have possibly heard a pin drop.
“Whoa. I want to be him.” Chanyeol exhaled, gawking at Kai with pure
mesmerisation.
“No questions?” Kai smirked. “I like this batch already. So, first off. You.”
he pointed straight at Sehun. Shit shit shit. Sehun blinked as his heart
hammered against his chest. “And you.” Kai shifted his index finger at the
tallest, bulkiest guy in the group. “Get into the ring and fight until one of
you loses.”
“What?!” Sehun yelped despite himself.
Kai’s lips pursed as his eyes narrowed before he silently walked over to Sehun
and stopped right in front of him. “What?” he arched a brow.
“No. I mean…” his throat and mouth went dry as he peered over at his classmate
who looked more than pleased to impress his teacher on the first day.
“Get. Into the ring. Punk.” His hand came up to Sehun’s collars out of nowhere
and Sehun grunted a little when Kai yanked him out of the group, shoving him
towards the ring. “You’re allowed to bludgeon one another, not in the face and
the nuts. ‘Cause that’s a dick move. You are not allowed to use your Flairs.
Show me what you got, smart mouth.”
A sob rose in Sehun’s throat but he dropped the brochure and took his ID off
his neck before dragging his feet to the ring. “Well, I’m gonna have fun
kicking your ass. Don’t need my Flair for that.” The guy spat, cracking his
knuckles as he gestured Sehun to get in first.
***** All The Wrong Moves *****
There was not any sort of ebullience left in Sehun as he stepped into the ring,
squeezing himself between the two ring ropes. The foam padded and canvas matted
stage beneath his shoes was definitely inanimate before the faux Arnold
Schwarzenegger jumped over the top ring rope and landed into the ring with a
monstrous thud that had Sehun staggering a step to the side. The haughty smirk
stretched his huge mouth, full lips halfway to his left eye and Sehun swallowed
the choking lump in his throat.
“What’re your names?” Sehun’s attention line to the faux Arnold Schwarzenegger
was snapped by Kai’s voice.
“Sig Laurent.” answered the wannabe. Sehun stuttered for a moment before
clearing his throat to speak. The words were gulped back down when he noticed
Kai’s glaring dark eyes scanning Sehun for signs of fear and hesitation.
Straightening his back, Sehun clenched his hands into fists and licked his
lips, pulling his chin up, just enough to challenge Kai’s glower.
“Sehun.” he spat monotonously without any indication of hesitation.
“Ziggy and Princesshun.” Kai waved two of his fingers casually, gesturing them
to get started as he moved to take a seat on the chair. He raised dropped his
black booted feet onto the table at the side of the chair and leaned back in
his seat, crossing his arms over his chest. Altogether, to sum it up, Kai was
an asshole. “Go ahead, Spunk Bubble. Stop staring at Shark and fight Ziggy.”
Kai’s smirk sent a jolt down Sehun’s spine and he immediately averted his gaze
to Ziggyas soon as he realized he was staring at the thinly lined stubble on
Kai’s jaw. He was most definitely not going to let go of the fact that Sehun
called him Shark.
Come on, Sehun. Don’t be a wuss. You’re better than that. Prove this man wrong.
Prove this mega jerk wrong. Control your powers. Don’t let them get the best of
you.Heaving a long sigh, Sehun pulled his fists up in the most awkward manner.
He had never even punched a punching bag before. Sure, he worked out. But those
workouts were basic boy stuff, boy his age at least. Those abs everyone been
complimenting were not going to help him win against this Ziggy. He was not
sure which advancement of his was funny, but Ziggy was laughing and scoffing at
him. Then without any forewarning, Ziggy zoomed across the ring and Sehun’s
rudimentary survival instincts wanted to shield his head and run for cover, but
his perversely unyielding stubbornness and self-pride forced him to stand his
ground with his chest hard and filled.
He almost clenched his eyes close when Ziggy’s hand came up to his cardigan and
he was hauled forward with a ferocious tug. That alone knocked every last of
the air out of his lungs and the last thing he saw before he shut his eyes was
Ziggy’s fist aiming to jab him in the face. There was absolutely no point in
trying to fight this guy. Sehun would lose no matter what.
“And this is where you both get into my bad books.” Kai’s yap yanked Sehun’s
eyelids open and he stared at Ziggy’s fist that was hanging mid-air for a
moment before he glanced over at Kai who shot up from the chair. “You.” he
pointed at Ziggy. “For trying to showcase your Herculean physical strength to
Scrappy-Doo and the first thing you think of when I ask you to fight is gloat.
One thing I don’t like to have in my class is swanks. No one here speaks for
Buncombe except me, capiche? And you.” he turned to face Sehun with an
expression that clearly spelled—‘do I have to put up with this loser for an
entire semester?’“You’re…” Kai started and Sehun’s eyes widened in
anticipation. Ziggy released his cardigan and stepped back completely. “You’re
just a disappointment. Class.” He spun around to meet the rest of the class.
“First lesson. Never shy away from a fight. Never show your weaknesses.
Princesshun was clearly in shit back there. What could he have done? Well, he
could have used his Flair.”
That was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Sehun climbed out of the ring
with his stomach churning out smoke as the by-product of his infuriation. “You
said we shouldn’t use our Flairs!” his voice came out louder and harsher than
intended and by the time he realized he should not have said anything, the ship
had sailed.
Kai did not turn around immediately. Instead, he locked his hands at the back
first before slowly turning to face Sehun with a dead serious face. “Would you
rather obey me or have your face broken?”
Sehun’s mouth went dry as he lowered his eyes unable to meet Kai’s sharp gaze.
“So… it would have been okay if I had used my Flair?”
“No.” the single syllable had the class flowing in whispered giggles. Sehun
looked up at Kai with a baffled look. “I would have severely punished you for
it. But at least, I wouldn’t have taken you for a stupid dumbfuck. Seems like
you have not gotten the memo about the fundamental principle of this class.
Combative Defence Arts. I don’t teach you to take a fist in the face. I teach
you to be the one giving the fist. But step one to any defence is self-
resistance. You don’t even want to try. What? Mommy and Daddy pampered you too
much with extra pocket money every day to use at school? Grow some balls and
wear some pants for the next class, Princesshun.” With that, he diverted his
attention back to the class. “Anyone else got a problem with abiding by my very
simple conditions?”
A set of shaking heads was held lower than Kai’s.
“Good.”
 
 
 
“Sehun!” Chanyeol called for the fifth time, but Sehun turned a deaf ear to his
screams as he hurried down the hallway, gripping his bag’s strap. “Hey, hey.”
Sehun was yanked to a stop by Chanyeol when the latter caught up to him. “What
is it, Chanyeol?” he sighed tiredly.
“Whoa. You okay?”
“No! I’m not okay! Okay?! I just got tyrannized by a teacher who supposedly has
to teach me for this entire term! He hates me to my guts when I’ve done
absolutely nothing to him! My roommate apparently is a hypocrite and is also a
jerk, looking forward to bullying me tonight at some stupid ceremony that I
don’t even want to attend but I’m forced to! I don’t think he even wants to
come to the room because I think I offended him in some sort of way by
helplessly replacing his old roommate! No one here except you even seem to like
me. This is like high school in all the poorly scripted movies! Apparently, I
have to see these people every single fucking day! So no, Chanyeol, I’m not
okay!”
Chanyeol licked and pursed his lips as he glanced at the people who walked past
them, giving them the stink eye. “It’s only… the first day, Sehun.” he
whispered, gently squeezing Sehun’s shoulder. He looked sorry, but he probably
did not understand Sehun’s plight. It was stupid of Sehun to think that he
would fit in this place just because people were like him. No. None of them was
like him. All these people knew how to manipulate their Flairs professionally
and had so much experience with bending their Flairs. For someone like Sehun
who had been imprisoned in his room all these years and was forced to keep his
Flair under the covers, this place was indeed like high school where he was one
of the wallflowers.
“Yeah, no shit.” He let out, shaking his head and retreated to the railings
before perching on it. “Everyone likes you.”
Chanyeol shrugged with a smirk playing on his lips. “Born that way. But no. I
read their minds beforehand so I just alter my behaviour according to how they
want me to act. But are we really going to ignore the fact that our CDA
instructor just called you Scrappy-Doo?”
Sehun groaned, rolling his eyes. “I called him Shark once! And he already has
two thousand five hundred and forty-one nicknames for me. What the hell does
Spunk Bubble even mean?!”
Chanyeol broke into a guffaw as he took his seat on the edge of the railings
beside Sehun. “I’m pretty sure he finds you amusing.”
Sehun blinked, arching his brows. “Amusing?”
“Yeah. Not in the good way, though.”
“Oh.” He sighed, lifting and dropping his shoulders.
“Shit. Male Vogue Model, ten o’clock.”
Sehun followed Chanyeol’s direction and he made an awkward eye-contact with
Kris who was standing by the hall’s entrance, giggling with Suho and Heva. He
shot Kris a very short and insincere grin before looking away. “What are they
planning on doing to us this evening?” he uttered under his breath.
“They’re not thinking about it right now.” Chanyeol whispered back. “But Mr
Hottie Pants thinks you’re playing hard to get.”
Sehun almost choked on his own spit and he uncontrollably loured back at Kris
whose fingers were stuck through his perfectly set hair—he was gripping it like
those male models in the magazines Sehun got off to, but he was not looking at
Sehun anymore. “What do you mean?”
Chanyeol shrugged again. “Oh wow.”
“What?”
“Fuck. His Flair is Atomic Manipulation.”
“What does that mean?”
Chanyeol tossed Sehun a familiar look. ‘Are you kidding me, you dumbass?’“He
can change atoms in a matter. Water to wine, lead to gold. That sort of stuff.”
“Wow. People here really do keep a low profile. Except our CDA instructor.”
“I know right.”
“What is he thinking now?”
“He’s hoping you’re thinking about him.”
Sehun scoffed. “You’re pulling my leg.”
“Duh.”
Grunting, Sehun jumped off the railings and started for the hall for the next
assembly.
***** Who Matters? *****
“The best thiiiiiing of beiiiiing a Flairerrrr is that you are betterrrr than
the stinkiiiing Pootles. We’re amazing! But Pootles are just… stupid! We rule
and they… poot.”
The urge to cover his ears from earlier was quickly overtaken by the amusement
he was witnessing before him. The feast hall reverberated with the coos and
melodious screams of the upperclassman. Sehun tried his best to remain in his
seat even if the bench was almost knocked off by the palpitating through and
through with their fists hammering the table and hands tossing bills at the
upperclassmen entertaining them with their ridiculous song to mock the mundane
part of God’s creation and their colourful feather shawls and candy garlands.
“Heva, baby!” the upperclassman chimed, holding his hand down to the girl
before hauling her up to the table. He threw the feather shawl around Heva’s
neck and pulled her into a casual dance as more currencies flew in the air.
Pursing his lips, Sehun took a sip of the lukewarm cola before letting out an
uncontrollable laugh when Heva did a twirl, elbowing the upperclassman in his
chest.
“Come on, freshman.” She cooed, wriggling her fingers, gesturing Chanyeol to
climb up the table. Sehun threw the taller a glance across the table and met
Chanyeol’s smirk. He had his arms folded on the edge of the table, smiling up
at Heva before he slowly shook his head.
“Hi.” Sehun’s concentration was rerouted to the guy beside him who popped up
out of nowhere. He blinked at the beaming fresh face, scanning it for a moment.
“I’m Baekhyun.” The boy extended a hand and it took Sehun awhile to take the
hand and shake it.
“Sehun.”
“Are you… new… too?” he asked with a lopsided smile. Baekhyun. The name rang a
bell, but he was not entire certain where or when he had heard it.
“Yeah. Yeah. First year."
"I wasn’t here for the orientation because my flight got cancelled. This seems…
fun.” His eyes widened in divertissement at the plentiful entertainment the
upperclassmen were providing them. “I still need to catch up but I guess I can
do that after the party.”
Sehun bit his lip, wondering what he should say. The guy was talking too much,
too fast. “It’s not the party. It’s just the dinner. The party starts after
this at the campus bar.”
“No way. It gets cooler than this?!” Baekhyun chuckled and stopped himself to
give Sehun a once-over. “Where’re you from?”
“Not from anywhere that matters. You?”
Baekhyun smug smile was the answer. “Are they singing about Pootles?”
“Yeah. Apparently, it’s funny. I’m sure most our parents here are… Pootles.”
“Oh.” He looked away with a pair of furrowed brows.
“What?”
“I… never really heard of Flairers with… mundane par—”
“There you are! Not joining the celebration?!” Kris’ arms came around both
Baekhyun and Sehun as he squawked into their ears with delirious exhilaration.
For an instant, Sehun had to hold his breath to block out Kris’ alcohol-
infested breath. He reeked of something that Sehun was not even familiar with.
The stench intermingled with a dash of musky aftershave which surprisingly
enticing. “Not your kinda dinner, Princesshun?” he purred, breathing into
Sehun’s face.
Suppressing the impulse to jab Kris in the throat, Sehun forced a smile. “Word
sure does get around fast here.” He muttered, lowering his head.
“Sounds better than Fish and… Tight Panties, doesn’t it?” Kris sighed.
“Tight Panties… Is that what he called you?”
“Yeah. The dark ages.” He patted on Sehun’s shoulder and retreated a step.
“When he calls you by your actual name, you can know that he respects you. And…
75 per cent of us did not earn his respect. So don’t be too harsh on yourself.
And you are…?” he turned his attention to Baekhyun who was staring at Kris in
complete confusion.
“Baekhyun.”
“Ah, shit. The Baekhyun that didn’t show up. Have you registered at the
office?”
“Yeah, yeah. Everything’s settled.”
“Cool. See you at the Dignitary Ceremony.” Baekhyun received a friendly clap of
Kris’ hand on his back before the older coursed his way to his group of friends
at the end of the table.
“What’s a Dignitary Ceremony?”
Sehun gulped down a mouthful of the fizzy drink before shrugging. “Just a fancy
name for bullying freshmen on their first day.”
“You seem really enthusiastic about being here.” He laughed, taking Sehun’s
glass away and sipped from it.
“It isn’t… what I expected. I thought I’d fit in.”
“Pressure gets to everyone on their first day. I, on the other hand, am very
much looking forward to knowing you better.”
For some odd reason, Sehun found Baekhyun comforting. He smiled and nodded his
head. “Me, too.” He said and meant it. The only good thing that could happen to
him right now was friends. He had made two so far. Heva did not particular seem
to mind Sehun, but she was more interested in Chanyeol. Kris… well, Sehun could
not read him at all. Was he a good guy or a bad guy? Baekhyun was nice. And
last but not least, Kai. He had to be the worst person Sehun had met in his
entire life.
“Can I have your attention, please, fellow freshmen?!” Suho got onto the table
and shot straight up, holding a spoon to his mouth like a microphone. “Seniors.
Those who want to stay for the Dignitary Ceremony, I kindly ask you all to take
your seats at the table and those who do not, you are dismissed. Now, freshmen!
Off your seats and stand away from the table.”
Once the first years were away from the table, Suho jumped off the table. “You
are Kris’ target.” Chanyeol muttered as he hurried to Sehun’s side.
“What?”
“Hope you wore your undies. Who are you?” he asked Baekhyun with an arched
brow. “Oh. My roommate. Baekhyun. Nice to meet you.” he blurted out but did not
sound welcoming.
Baekhyun scoffed. “Read my mind much?”
“Literally.”
Baekhyun’s face lit up. “Whoa? I was just… kidding. You really read minds?!
Telepathy?!”
“Yeah. A little.”
They shook hands.
Sehun opened his mouth to ask what Chanyeol meant earlier, but he was
interrupted by Suho’s speech. “As most of you must have already heard, we’ll be
proceeding with the Dignitary Ceremony before the party. It is sort of an
unofficial protocol for you to be accepted socially here. We, the upperclassmen
will challenge you. Should you fail, you will have to face a forfeit. The
forfeit this year is to lick Gunter’s foot. Gunter, show us The Foot.”
The guy who stepped forward was round and huge. But the thing that appalled
Sehun the most was the ‘Eat This’ T-shirt he was wearing. He flumped on the
bench before lifting his bare foot up. It was at least three times the size of
Sehun’s foot. A chorus of ‘ew’ and ‘uh’ wove through the hall.
“Since there’s almost an equal distribution here among the upperclassmen and
underclassmen, each of us will challenge one or two of you. Let the Dignitary
Ceremony commence! As the chairman, I get to do the honours.” Suho stuck his
spoon out and drew it along the line of freshmen. It stopped at the short girl
who had the most beautiful red locks and the most beguiling svelte hips. “Step
forward.”
She obliged without hesitation, but with a timid smile on her thin lips.
“What’s your name?” Suho’s question sounded more sexual than it should have.
“Esther.”
“Well, then Esther. I’ll give you an easy one. Give Gunter here a lap dance.”
This time, the hall fell into two contradicting ‘ooh’s. One that sounded like
the ‘ooh’ in the ‘no way’ way and the other that sounded like the ‘ooh’ in the
‘fuck yeah’ way.
While Esther dragged her feet over to Gunter with the sourest expression, the
rest of the upperclassmen turned their focus onto the rest. Heva was the first
to approach Chanyeol and even then, she did not look like she wanted to
tyrannize him. “15 glasses of water.” She said. “Drink them all in less than
half a minute and you’re done.”
“That’s not fair.” Chanyeol protested with a frown.
“What’s the problem, Chanyeol? Don’t have the balls?”
Chanyeol nodded before shaking his head. “I’ll have my revenge one day.”
“Oooh, Chanyeol. That is definitely not the way to speak to your senior. Now
come on. Less talking, more drinking.” She clung onto Chanyeol’s sport coat and
hauled him to the jug on the table.
Sehun’s eyes quickly scoured the hall for Kris and when he spotted him, he
wished he had not. Kris was still sitting recumbent with his legs spread wide
like those arrogant frat boys with a bottle of beer in his hand. His eyes—those
dreamy eyes—were set on Sehun as he took a sip of the beer before rising to his
full height.
Sehun diverted his attention to the upperclassman who was ordering Baekhyun to
moo like a mad cow, but the distraction did not suffice when Kris stopped
directly before him. “So.” He said as the hall rumbled into chaos and laughter.
Sehun looked up at him indifferently, plunging his hands into the pockets of
his skinny jeans. The Dignitary Ceremony had nothing to do with dignitary. It
meant to soil your dignity. It was ironic in nature. “What should I have you
do?” he murmured, eyeing Sehun from bottom to top.
“Anything has got to be better than licking The Foot, right?” his hands
tightened into fists in his pockets.
Kris actually snickered. “True.” He held his bottle of beer out and Sehun
stared at it. “Drink it.”
“What?”
“Drink.”
“I don’t… drink. I’m vegetarian.”
“I can assure this is completely meat-free.”
“No… I mean…” Sehun swallowed, gaping at the bottle.
“The Foot or the beer?”
Sehun’s eyes darted over to Gunter who was thoroughly enjoying Esther’s lap
dance. Gross.He eyeballed the bottle and licked his lips. “I’m not… allowed to
drink.”
“Look here. Stop arguing and wasting my time. You can either choose to drink
this beer or face the penalty. It’s as easy as that.”
“You’re not doing this.” Sehun uttered sotto voce, staring directly into Kris’
eyes. For a moment, Kris stared back as if he were considering letting Sehun
off the hook this once.
But then, Suho came into the picture. “What’s up, man? What did you ask our
Princesshun to do?”
Kris’ jaw tightened one second before he was nonchalant again. “Asked him to
have a beer.”
“Wow. Why are you playing favourites? That’s unfair.”
“Well, it turns out Bubble Butt here does not drink and holds onto celibacy.”
He snorted and quaffed a mouthful of beer.
“Oh damn.” Suho chimed and ruffled Sehun’s hair. “Drink or lick?”
“Or both?” Kris chuckled.
Sehun really did not mind drinking anymore. But what pissed him off was this
place, these people, these Flairers. The more these people pretended to be on
top of the world, the more it angered him.
“Forfeit. Come on.” Suho grabbed Sehun’s arm and yanked him forward. “First
candidate of the night to taste The Foot!”
Sehun pulled his hand out of the pocket and unrolled it. There was a sudden
shortage of breath. It felt as if his lungs were filling with water. There was
no space left for air. Inflating them felt like pushing up a lead weight on his
chest. Kris and Suho’s guffaws became nothing but an echo in the furthest
corner of his mind. Everything blurred and he saw grey. Nothing but grey like
every time he lost control. Walls of grey. A grey world.
“What the fuck?!”
“Sehun!”
“He fucking spaced out?!”
Sehun!
By the time he snapped, by the time the actual world returned to him, a side of
his head slammed the marble floor with a brutal thud and his body drowned in an
ocean of fog. Thick, ice cold fog. “Hey! Stay away!” he heard Kris’ voice and
felt a hand squeeze his arm as he slowly lidded and unlidded his eyes, staring
at the white fog. Everything slowed down like it was too frozen to move. The
hall was clogged with impenetrable fog and coldness.
“Sehun, are you all right?” Chanyeol’s voice was just as distant and unclear.
Sehun knew he would not be able to move, so he did not try. He still saw. He
still heard. He still felt. But he was not there. Each second that passed had
the hall fill with more coldness. “Give him some space!” he saw Chanyeol kneel
before him.
“Get out of my fucking way.” this voice was familiar, but not friendly or
concerned. It was more authoritative and rough. “What happened?”
“We don’t even know, sir. He just spaced out and all this fog came out of
nowhere and he just collapsed but his eyes are still opened, he’s just not
responding.” Kris answered in a haste.
“Well, next time you choose to bully someone, pick someone your own size, Ruddy
Rottweiler. Scrappy-Doo is off-limits.”
Sehun’s vision remained blurry and hazy but he instantaneously recognized the
profile that hovered above him. Kai bent down and a pair of strong and firm
arms came around Sehun before they effortlessly lifted him from the ground.
Sehun lifelessly lied in Kai’s arms as he was carried out of the hall. At least
he did not let Sehun’s head hang back. He had it pressed and supported against
his chest. Sehun dragged the pleasant scent of Kai’s skin in.
“What happened, Kai?” it was Headmistress Dillan, Sehun reckoned, who asked in
a desperate tone when they were in the hallway. Kai did not stop as he kept
walking with a steady pace.
“They said he just spaced out suddenly. Do you think he’s listening?”
“Yes.” Dillan muttered as she hurried to keep up with Kai’s long strides. “They
warned us. I didn’t think it’ll be this bad.”
“You should have told me earlier.” Kai kept mum from there onwards, but Sehun
sensed a tinge of concern and regret in his tone.
They warned us. They? They who?
Sehun wondered if his parents had informed the academy of his condition.
As much as he hated Kai, his warmth was soothing. So was his scent.
They reached a room which was lit bright, too bright that Sehun squinted at the
luminance of the white room. The White Room. A couple of White Gowns came into
sight in the White Room. “Lay him here.” One of them ordered.
The warmth and the scent faded when Sehun was replaced on a bed. The White Room
smelled like chlorine. “What happened to him?”
Something stung Sehun’s arm. Injection. Sehun mentally sighed and closed his
eyes.
“We can’t keep him here.”
“… Must…”
“… Happen… again.”
“We’ll take care of that.”
“You take care of your job, Kai.”
“He’s just a kid, mother.”
Grey turned to black.
***** Leftovers *****
The world was etched in darkness. For a moment, Sehun thought that his eyes
were deceiving him in the dark. There was absolutely no hint of light.
Wondering if he had fallen into oblivion and if this was what oblivion felt
like, he moved his hand. It took him a moment for the receptors to kick in and
when they did, it registered to him that there was something smooth beneath his
palm, an unwrinkled plane of softness. His fingertips dug themselves into the
unnamed softness and his eyes smiled at the material that yielded readily at
his touch. Slowly, the jagged wall became apparent before his eyes. Wall? No.
Ceiling. It was as if it were stuffed with cotton—his head.
“Uh…” he breathed out and almost grinned at his own voice. It was nice to hear
himself again. Cupping his forehead with a hand, he tried to move his legs.
They moved. He pulled himself up to a sitting position and leaned his back onto
something that was hard. He was on a bed, under the covers. Pushing the duvet
aside, he looked around him. The darkness gave nothing else away. He lifted his
hand and the window frames rumbled, curtains swished before a gush of
uncontrollable wind forcefully shoved the windows open, allowing a strong
stream of crisp night air into the room along with a dim spurt of moonlight.
Sehun’s eyes darted to the source of the wind and stared at the opened windows
for a minute before realizing that he was back in his room. Scrubbing his face
with his warm palms, he heaved a long breath in. With a wave of his hand, the
room was free of the wind, but he let the cold air remain. How many days had it
been?
Batting his eyes, he slid off the bed and almost crashed the floorboards if it
weren’t for his hand that clung onto the bedframe. He was still in the same
shirt he had worn to the orientation but his cardigan was carelessly tossed
aside, hanging from the desk’s chair. Any normal person in this state would ask
what happened. Sehun did not need to. He knew what happened exactly. He had an
episode and embarrassed himself. Burying his face in his hands, he tried to
steady his quickening breath. He rose to his feet and glanced around the room.
Kris’ bed was still untouched. Sehun stuck his hand into his front pocket out
of habit to fish his phone out before he realized that he did not have it on
him. Shaking his head, he pulled his shirt off and let it drop to the floor.
Just when he was done taking his shoes and socks off, the door slammed open and
Kris spilled into the room with a charge of blended stenches of alcohol and
sweat. Sehun stood there unmoving. So he did not miss days. Just hours. He
could almost sigh out of relief now. The last thing he needed now was to miss
classes because of his stupid condition.
He stared at Kris stumble into the room and twiddling with the door handle
before he finally managed to latch the door close. When he turned, he went
completely stock-still with ballooned eyes and gaped at Sehun as if he had seen
a zombie gorging on a living person. Even in this utter tenebrosity which was
only slightly aided by the moonlight, Sehun could see how stewed Kris was.
Bloated pink cheeks, chili red lips which were glistening with his saliva and
his hair looked as if he had walked through a mobile, destructive vortex of
violently rotating winds. Kris covered his mouth with his hand out of the
sudden and stepped on the back of his sneakers to take them off before hurtling
to his bed. He did not say a word as he collapsed onto the bed, on his stomach.
Sehun still stared at him with an expression even he would not have been able
to perceive. How could someone get so drunk in an academy? He thought about
asking but then again would Kris even be able to sound coherent at this point?
Sehun felt his blood rush to his cheeks when he noticed Kris watching him with
a side of his face buried into the pillow. He pulled his hand away from his
mouth and stared back at Sehun with droopy eyes. “Are you… from the party?”
Sehun asked in a very low voice. He did not even know if Kris heard it since
his roommate just turned his head to the other side.
“Yeah.” He heard Kris sigh.
“You’re… pissed as hell.”
“One of the kids got his hands on some cool happy pills.”
“Drugs?!” Sehun gasped. “You did drugs?!”
Kris did not bother to face Sehun as he muttered, “Sorry if I’ve offended you,
Princesshun. Don’t fog the room up, too.”
“Excuse me?”
“Who knew I’d have another freak for a roommate… This is just…spectacular.”
Kris shot up abruptly as Sehun hurried for the protection of the bathroom. “Oh
shit, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean it!”
“I think you very much did.” Sehun blurted out, trembling like a leaf as he
burst into the bathroom. Kris struggled to get off the bed but he managed and
he crossed the room in a hurry and Sehun almost closed the door before Kris’
hand blocked it.
“I swear to God, I’m drunk as fuck. I didn’t mean it.”
“You know what? I’ve heard people call me freak all my life. I was locked up in
a room for a fair bit of my life so that no one would call me freak again. So I
guess I’m very used to it. I was not expecting people to call me a freak here
‘cause I thought the place will be filled with freaks like me. But boy, have I
ever been more mistaken. You’re all very perfect. I’m just a… freak.”
“Hey, Sehun… come on. I’m sorry.”
“Cool.” With that Sehun yanked the door shut before slumping his back against
it. He covered his nose and mouth with his cupped hands before his eyes welled
up with tears.
First day ended in tears.
 
 
 
The bell finally tolled. Every chime raised another pace of Sehun’s beating
heart. He hugged his knees closer to his chest as he heard footsteps and
ruffles all over the academy. He had woken up hours before six only because he
did not want to face Kris in the morning and he had been sitting outside the
locale of his first class. Combative Defence Arts. The morning had been a
string a sighs and knee headings. He clearly recalled everything that had
happened last night until he was in the White Room. His rude CDA instructor had
brought him to that White Room. The headmistress was there. He recalled nothing
after that. The school probably knew everything about Sehun of course. He
doubted that he could keep any secret from an academy full of gifted people.
“Don’t you think you’re a bit too punctual for your first class, Scrappy?”
Sehun scrambled to his feet at Kai’s account and dusted his pants at the back
before bowing before Kai. He received a scoff of disdain in return. He quickly
straightened up and cleared his throat before properly meeting Kai’s eyes. He
was stopped in his tracks when he took in Kai’s clean-shaved face and tight
black t-shirt and skin-tight jeans that were clinging to his body like a second
skin. Around his neck scintillated a silver neck chain that held two dog tags.
Sehun wondered what was written on them but did not have the leisure for long.
“Last night.” He started once he was done scanning Kai. He wanted to lower his
head but he knew he would want to look into Kai’s eyes if he wanted to be taken
seriously. “You… I mean I wanted to thank you.”
Kai stood silent for a moment as if he were scanning Sehun now. And then he
pinned Sehun down with a scowl. “You’re my student. I look out for my students.
Your parents pay me for that. I don’t need your thanks.” With that, he brushed
past Sehun and unlocked the locale.
“Yes, I’m sure… B-But…” he stuttered and Kai paused with his hand on the door
handle. Sehun stuck his hands into the pockets of his cardigan and pursed his
lips. “I just wanted to thank you.”
Kai scoffed again. “You don’t want me to humiliate you in the class using your
condition against you. Is that what you want?”
Sehun slowly nodded his head, casting his eyes low, gnawing on his lower lip.
“I’d appreciate that.”
“Well, don’t you think it’s out of my hands? You pretty much pulled on a
performance last night. I cannot ensure you that none of my teachings will put
you at harm. This is a combat mastering class. If you think you’re not cut out
for it, you’re gonna have to fail this class.”
“I want to learn! Can’t you be a bit optimistic and encourage me?!” Sehun
regretted it the second after he had said that.
Kai pushed the door open and crossed his arms over his chest. “Or else? What’re
you gonna do, Hamster Paws? Throw a cyclone or two on me?”
“I’m not… incapable of doing that.” He murmured under his breath and was
completely caught off-guard when he spotted Kai’s smirk.
“I’d like to see you try. But that is the attitude you’ll need in this class.
However, it’s not the attitude I need, understand?”
Sehun quickly nodded his head. “Again, thanks. For… last night.”
Kai did not respond as he walked into the locale. Sehun let out a heavy breath
and leaned back against the wall, resting the back of his head on it. He waited
until the rest of the class showed up before decided to go in but was halted by
an arm around his neck. He spun around but before he could even perceive the
face, Chanyeol pulled him into a ferocious hug. “You little shit. You scared me
like fuck last night!”
“Watch your language, Groot.” Baekhyun remarked, smiling at Sehun when Chanyeol
released Sehun. “Glad to know you’re doing fine.”
“Yeah.” Sehun sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. “I’d rather not talk about
it.”
“You might not. But the entire academy is.” Chanyeol whispered, massaging
Sehun’s shoulder as he ushered him into the locale. “Everyone also saw how your
knight in black shining armour swooped you away last night.”
Sehun almost choked on his breath. “Chanyeol, he might hear you.” he hissed,
elbowing him in the chest and gave the room a glance before he spotted Kai in
the corner, going through some papers on a clipboard.
“Nah. He won’t.”
“At least you cut the stupid Dignitary Ceremony short by blowing the place up
with fog.” Baekhyun laughed and both Chanyeol and Sehun stared at him with a
scornful look. “Yeah, sorry.”
“It’s all right.” Sehun smiled.
“What happened last night?”
Sehun exchanged a look with Chanyeol who was trying hard to maintain a neutral
expression. He averted his gaze to the other students who were eyeing him with
confused passive aggression. Licking his lips, Sehun reverted his eyes back to
Chanyeol. Of course Chanyeol would have known by now. He was able to read
everyone’s mind. “Nothing.” Chanyeol answered when Sehun did not.
“Nothing? That wasn’t nothing, mate.”
“Drop it, okay?” Chanyeol’s tone turned serious in a split second and Baekhyun
arched a brow before shrugging it off. “They brought you to the infirmary? What
did they do to you there?”
Sehun shook his head, eyes darting to Kai again. “I don’t remember. He… called
someone mother.”
“Oh. Headmistress Dillan.” Chanyeol rasped.
Sehun blinked rapidly. “She’s his mother?!” he gasped sotto voce.
“No. Mother-in-law.”
“Oh.” Sehun swallowed. “He’s… married?”
“I believe so.”
“Good morning, fellow students. Some of you will indisputably and inevitably
fail this semester.” Kai greeted. His voice was powerful and loud enough for
the entire room to reverberate it. “Those who even have the slightest doubt of
passing this class, to my left. Those who are certain that you’ll pass, to the
right.”
The class seemed to be lost for a minute but everyone started moving shortly
after. Sehun held his ground, unsure of where to move to. “Sehun?” Chanyeol,
who was already moving to the right, called.
Sehun flashed a suppressed smile. “I’m moving to the left.”
“Dude, wrong move. He’s expecting us to show some guts. He’s planning on
picking on the ‘Leftovers’.”
Sehun cringed. “Leftovers?” he whispered.
“That’s what he calls them in his head.”
Without even trying to fight it, Sehun shot Kai a glare. “So be it.” He spat
and deliberately moved to the left where all the short, small, thin students
stood, except Baekhyun who daringly went to the right. Of course Ziggy was on
the right. Kai stood between the two groups with his hands tied at the back and
a smirk plastered on his face.
“So, Leftovers and Righters.” He started. Asshole.He gave them a cursory glance
and rolled his eyes. “You. Left.” He pointed at Baekhyun. Clenching his jaw,
Baekhyun removed to the left. “So first of all, each of you will be appointed
to one from the opposing team. You will be sparring one another. The first half
of the semester, we will be focusing on your physicality, without using your
Flairs. In the second half we’ll be training with your Flairs. How to master
the combo between your physical combative skills along with your Flairs. Any
questions?”
One of the Righters raised his hand. Kai cocked his eyebrow at him. “Will we be
one-on-one?”
“If threeway or an orgy is your fetish, I’m not gonna comment on that, King
Kong.”
An uproar of laughter showered the class with humour. “I mean… there’s seven of
us and eight of them.” He waved his hand at the Leftovers.
“That’s why they’re called the Leftovers.”
Another uproar of laughter.
“Tiny Tootie, you’re with the White Tree of Gondor there.” Kai pointed his
forefinger at Baekhyun then Chanyeol. Sehun clenched his eyes for a moment to
pray. Please not Ziggy, please not Ziggy. Please, please, please not Ziggy.
“Are you meditating for world peace, Scrappy?” Kai’s remark flew Sehun’s eyes
open.
“Uh…”
“You’re with me.” Kai sighed tiredly at Sehun and proceeded to the next
Leftover. “You’re with mighty Zeus there. You, Tinkerbell, you’re with Ziggy.”
Sehun still tried to process what Kai had just said. Did he just say you’re
with me? Shit.
***** Vindictive Lunatic *****
“Is he… kidding? We… seriously… can’t be… doing this… for the entire… class!”
Sehun doubted that Kai would not have heard Baekhyun’s very much loud and
intentional whisper. He glanced over at Kai who was seated on a chair,
supporting his weight on nothing but its hind legs with his booted feet resting
on the table. He kept his focus on the clipboard, his fingers wrapped around
the pen that was gliding languidly across the papers on the clipboard. Sehun
had no idea how he could maintain a balance like that for an hour now. “How is
this supposed to teach us anything?” Baekhyun hissed, tossing a pair of
nunchucks into the box after having them polished thoroughly. Sehun shifted his
gaze from Baekhyun to Kai again, hands idling on the moth-eaten cloth and the
sheathed baselard. No matter which stance he tried to look at it from, he could
not understand Kai’s angle. Why did he particularly choose Sehun to be his
partner? Or more like why did he choose himself to be Sehun’s partner? Was he
looking out for Sehun now? Or was he simply just commiserating with Sehun
because of the ‘big secret’? Whatever it was, Sehun definitely did not need a
babysitter. He did not need Kai to feel obligated to look out for him just
because his job required him to do so. He suspected Headmistress Dillan to be
involved in this arrangement as well. Otherwise, Kai—who seemingly hated his
guts—would not have transformed from a jackass teacher to a somewhat
sympathetic nanny in the span of one day. All that Sehun ever wanted was to be
liberated, to be able to make his own choices, to construct his own road to his
future without anyone affording him any sort of protection. He had had enough
of having to live in accordance to a set of tedious, soul-destroying
regulations and directives. They had all been for his own good, yes. But what
was the point if he had to live safe and sound all his life? What was the point
of him being gifted with this destructive power?
“You’re right.” He flung the ragged cloth onto the table and carefully settled
the baselard aside. Peeling his eyes off Kai, he dragged them along the
remaining unfinished boxes on the table that held more weapons than they could
finish cleaning in two days.
“Here.” Chanyeol returned with a wet cloth and handed it to Baekhyun who shook
his head in response. “What?”
“Are you seriously okay with this?!” Baekhyun snapped under his breath. “We
came here to learn. Not to wipe these shits.”
“Shh.” Chanyeol hushed him, shoving the damp cloth into Baekhyun’s chest. “He
has a reason for doing this.”
Sehun blinked at him. “You… know.” He breathed out. “What does he have on his
mind?!”
Chanyeol smirked and shrugged. “Come on, guys. You can’t expect me to just hand
over my answer sheets to you, right?”
Both Sehun and Baekhyun exchanged odd glances. “You cannot be serious.”
Baekhyun rasped. “You’re the one who’s cheating here! You’re not supposed to be
using your Flair!”
Another shrug. “Perks of being me. Deal with it. But… I guess I can give you
guys a hint. He’s aiming for team-efficiency here. So I suggest you and I get
our bit done with before the class ends.”
“Well, that’s unfair.” Sehun protested. “You guys are helping each other out.
I’m stuck with the teacher.” He hissed sotto voce. “Do you know how badly that
sucks?! And I don’t think he’s planning on giving me a hand with this fuckton
of weapons any time soon.”
Chanyeol pursed his lips as if trying to refrain himself from laughing. “You
seriously think he’s sympathizing you, that’s why he partnered you with him?”
Sehun’s eyes widened. Of course, you know why he chose me!Chanyeol gave a
discreet nod with a smirk tugging at a corner of his lips. Why?!
“Only because he doesn’t want anyone else in this class to fail.” Chanyeol
answered with a sigh, grabbing Baekhyun’s arm.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“He thinks you’ll fail, ergo also the person he partners you with.”
Bloody jackass.Sehun gripped the edge of the wooden table and dug his nails
into it before looking up at Kai with utter disdain, intermingled with a dash
of embarrassment. His vexation heightened and reached its pinnacle when the
cold, disgustingly moist rag slapped a side of his face. “Hoi! Quit daydreamin’
and polish your joystick, weirdo.” Ziggy spat from the table next to Sehun’s.
“It looks like it needs hella lot of polishing.” He fisted the air right before
his crotch and yanked his fist back and fro as if pumping his junk. A clatter
of laughter coursed across the room, even Tinkerbell—Ziggy’s very much twink of
a partner—was sniggering at Sehun. His eyes desperately looked over to Kai but
the instructor did nothing. He did not even lift his head. He clearly must have
heard. He clearly knows what’s going on. What am I looking for? For him to
reprimand them? For him to come to my rescue? What the hell, Sehun?! This isn’t
primary school for you to cling onto your teacher! You’re pathetic.He finished
with a frown. No. He did not want Kai to come to his rescue. But at least, as a
teacher, Kai could do his job. “If you need some help, I’m sure your friend
there would be able to help!” Ziggy’s unacceptable remark was welcomed with
another round of laughter. This time, Sehun noticed the chary smirk playing on
Kai’s lips as he scribbled on the clipboard.
“If there’s anyone here who needs help to polish his joystick, it’s you,
Ziggy.” Chanyeol retorted and hurled the rag back at Ziggy’s face. “Seeing that
your mommy is not around anymore.”
“You fucking—” Ziggy started through his grit teeth and advanced a step forward
before a loud slam froze them in their places. Kai rose to his full height and
heaved a great sigh. Crossing his arms over his chest, he cleared his throat.
“I can see that many of you are not team players here, except for the White
Tree of Gondor, but I guess that’s because you read my mind, thus what I’m
expecting.” Kai said calmly. “Nevertheless, you are all on your own. But if
you’re against one another, you might as well sign up for the Hunger Games. If
all of you had helped each other out, you could have finished by now. But no.
Most of you were only targeting to finish earlier than the other groups.
Understandable. But that’s a Pootle thinking. You are Flairers. I know that all
your hatred and jealousy for one another are premised on relatively cogent
reasoning, but you should at least pretend to be liking each other in my class.
Now, to the matter at hand. To every task that I assign you with, there will be
a failure. The failure for this task is the one with the most weapons left to
clean.”
Sehun quickly scoured the tables and realized that only his held the most
boxes.
“And obviously…” Kai arched a brow at Sehun. Don’t argue, Sehun. Don’t open
your mouth. Sehun kept repeating to himself, biting his tongue. “So, you will
spend every morning before your classes cleaning every last one of these
weapons.” he dragged his index finger across all the boxes on the tables.
“What?!” Sehun blurted out, jaw dropping to the ground as the class began to
drown in laughter—Ziggy’s the loudest. “That’s unfair!”
“I afford fairness to those in my good gracious! You fall short.” Kai snarled
with his brows knotting into an unforgiving scowl. “One more word to prove your
lack of consensus in my style of teaching, get the fuck out of my class.”
Sehun’s hand curled around the hilt of the baselard on the table before him.
The urge to hurl it at Kai’s face overtook his sanity for a moment. “Sehun,
calm down.” He heard Chanyeol’s whisper and his hand around his elbow.
He wanted to walk away. He wanted to spit on Kai’s face. But he could not. This
was his only chance at being free. This academy was his only chance, his only
choice. He cannot afford to jeopardize it all just because he was not on the
best of terms with a single teacher. “So unless you follow my orders, or you
can find yourself another instructor at another academy.” Kai finished.
Sehun lowered his head. How foolish of him to think that someone like Kai would
care for a student…
 
 
 
 
He was not sure if he missed home. But he surely did miss his parents. The bits
of broccoli and chicken porridge rested idle before him on the tray. The spoon
indolent in his fingers, head heavy, chest tight. He could not bring himself to
wrap his mind around everything that had happened in the past two days. He
honestly thought that he was going to be a wallflower, but no. He was once
again the Freak that everyone seemed to despise even if he had done nothing to
them. Well, actually, he did clog the place up with fog last night. But he was
not to be blamed for it. Who was to be blamed for it, then? These hormonal
young adults? Sehun let out an exasperated breath and got up with his tray, his
food left untouched. The hall was congested, but he could barely focus on any
of the noises the students were making.
“Sehun!”
He looked back only to see Chanyeol hurrying up to him with a juice box. “I
haven’t had one of those since the Middle Ages, Chanyeol.” Sehun sighed,
smiling as Chanyeol held the juice box out.
“Thought you’d like it.”
“Thanks.” Sehun accepted it and dropped the tray into the bin before following
Chanyeol out of the hall. “Do you have PTM next?”
“Nope. I’ve a free module. Then I’ve…” he trailed off, scratching the back of
his neck.
“What?”
“Just going around the academy with Heva.”
Sehun halted on his tracks to blink at Chanyeol. “When did this happen?”
Chanyeol shrugged. “Last night? Well, nothing technically happened. She offered
to give me an unofficial tour around the school.”
“Oh. Well.” Sehun chimed, smirking before he elbowed Chanyeol’s arm. “Aren’t
you whipped?”
“Not at all. Hey, I’ve gotta run now. See you later?”
Sehun nodded, smiling as wide as he can. Once he was alone in the corridor, he
probed the juice box, drawing his thumb as if underlining the word ‘orange’.
That was when his head almost slammed into another as his chest collided into
Kris’. “Sorry.” He muttered, bending down to pick up Kris’ book.
“No problem. I did it on purpose.” Kris said with a cocky smirk etched on his
full lips.
“What?” Sehun cringed and rolled his eyes, still holding the book out. When
Kris did not take it, he shoved it into his chest and brushed past him.
“Hey, you’re still mad about last night?” he tagged along.
“Oh, you remember?” Sehun scoffed. “I’m surprised.”
“Yes. And I also recall apologizing and you slamming the door at my face.”
Sehun came to an abrupt halt when his eyes fell on Kai who was talking to a
woman on the adjacent corridor. She wore her brown hair short, shoulder-length
short. Even from here, he could see that she was fairly young. Neither of them
was smiling as Kai listened to what she was saying with a cocked brow and lips
snapped shut. Then she leaned in and brushed her lips on Kai’s cheek before
walking away.
“Are you listening?” Kris snapped.
“Huh?” Sehun tore his eyes from his instructor who ran his fingers through his
hair, hanging his head. “Is that his… wife?” he jerked his chin at Kai.
“Who?” Kris followed his direction and snorted. “Yeah. Why?”
“Is she a teacher here, too?”
“Yes. She’s my Atomic Physics teacher. I don’t even know how a chick like her
puts up with that Shark.”
“Speaking of Shark, I got into deep shit because of you!” Sehun prodded a
finger into Kris’ chest, shoving him back a little. Kris chuckled.
“Sorry.”
“Sorry isn’t going to cut it! Now I’m getting tyrannized by that vindictive
lunatic!”
“Okay, okay. Let me make it up to you.”
Sehun crossed his arms. “How?”
“Well.” Kris tore the juice box from Sehun’s fist and poked the straw into it
before taking a long drag from it. Sehun watched his Adam’s apple bob as he
swallowed the juice. “Do you like cakes?”
“Who doesn’t?”
“Awesome. It’s Blueberry Buckle night for the seniors. It’s so good that you
would almost give up getting laid with Emma Watson for it. Almost.I’m gonna get
you some.”
“Uh…” Sehun was gay. Definitely gay. But he would like to get laid by Emma
Watson. No questions asked.
“Just wait for me in the room, okay?” Kris grinned and grabbed hold of one of
Sehun’s hands before wrapping it around the juice box—slowly.
 
 
 
The sun set faster here. It felt somehow comforting. Sehun always hid himself
in the dark, in the cold. His room back home had always been a cold cave. Light
and brightness never appealed to him. His cousins found him eccentric. They
never liked hanging out with him. Well, Sehun was not exactly a fan of them
either. Every time they visited for Christmas or birthday parties, Sehun
preferred the protection of his room than the fake affection they were forced
to pour onto him because he was… weird.
“Did Chanyeol tell you where he’s gone to?” Baekhyun questioned subtly,
sprawled across Sehun’s bed, on his stomach and legs parked upwards, aimlessly
flipping through the pages of his textbook. Sehun disconnected his attention to
his paper and put the pen down before leaning back on the chair of his desk.
“He said he’ll be out with Heva.”
“Oh. Heva? The upperclassman?”
“Yeah.”
Baekhyun sneered and rolled to lie on his back. “Making friends is difficult
here, isn’t it?”
Sehun had no idea why Baekhyun thought that hanging out in his room would make
him less lonely because Sehun certainly was not in the mood to entertain him.
He had a paper to hand in tomorrow in PTM. “It is.”
“It’s like everyone thinks that we’re inferior or something. Chanyeol, too.”
“Chanyeol thinks that you’re inferior?” Sehun was suddenly attentive. He
shifted in his seat to face Baekhyun. “Why would you think that? He’s the only
one who’s been completely nice to me here.”
“That’s weird.” Baekhyun sat up. “I noticed, too. That’s really, really weird.
He’s definitely one of those guys who would beat you up for accidentally
knocking their pen down.”
Sehun did have the impression when they first met. But Chanyeol quickly warmed
up to him. “Well, maybe that’s because you don’t know him well, yet.”
“Really? You know him well, then?”
“I’m getting to know him, Baekhyun. What’s your point here?”
“My point is that he’s hiding something.”
“Oh God. We all have secrets. It doesn’t mean he’s being weird.”
“Okay, okay.” Baekhyun raised his palms in surrender. “Sorry. I’m just saying
that… did you see how he snapped at Sig today?”
“Well, that bastard earned it.”
Baekhyun bit his lip, staring at Sehun with something like scrutiny. He shook
his head suddenly. “Forget about it. I just think he’s only trying to be nice
to you.”
Sehun did not know why, but that made him smile. That was not a bad thing, was
it? “If you don’t mind, I’ve to finish writing this paper or Miss Dina’s gonna
go all ape shit on me tomorrow.”
“All right, I’ll just… do my stuff.”
There was silence for a moment as Sehun twiddled with the pen, wondering what
he should write next. But he could not stop himself when he asked, “Baekhyun,
what’s your Flair?”
A smile formed on Baekhyun’s lips. “What do you think?”
“Probably something inferior to Chanyeol’s Flair?”
“Good guess.” He sighed. “Flairers usually aren’t really forthcoming about
their Flairs.”
“I reckoned. Everyone keeps a low profile here.”
“Did you know that Sig’s is fluid control?”
“Really?” Sehun scoffed and laughed. “Mine is better, I guess?”
“Uh… You have fluid in your body, Sehun. He can have choked on your own blood.”
“Oh.”
“I can generate pheromones. Through skin-to-skin contact.”
Sehun’s jaw fell slacking. “How is that in any way inferior to Chanyeol’s
Flair?!”
“Really, Sehun?” he chortled. “The guy would know if I’m edging close with an
intention to generate pheromones.”
“Right.” He scratched the back of his head.
“Sehun…” Baekhyun started. “Remember when you told me that your parents are
Poot—humans?”
“Yeah, why? Are yours not?”
Baekhyun slowly shook his head. “I don’t think—”
He was cut off when the door was pushed open with a brutal shove until it
banged on the wall behind. “Hey, Oh Sehun! Call for you!” yapped the watchman
whom Sehun had not even said a word to prior to this.
“Call?” he asked, blinking vacantly. “My parents?”
“I don’t know. Best be on your way!” the old man barked and Sehun quickly rose
to his feet before grabbing his cardigan and broke into a jog.
He knew he was not climbing down the steps fast enough. Super speed would have
been very helpful now. The hallway was empty with few torches lit along the
walls as he sprinted through it. As soon as he reached the telephone booth
which was always locked at the corner of the hallway, he spilled into it,
panting hard with his chest heaving. “Hello?!”
“Sehun!” his mother cried on the other end.
“Mom! How are you?!”
“Forget about me, Sehun! How are you?! The school called. What happened,
Sehun?!”
“I’m fine. I’m fine, mom.” He could not hide the ridiculous grin on his face as
his mother continued to rasp on the line.
 
 
 
They had not even started to talk about his exceptionally hot roommate when the
watchman tapped on the booth’s door, gesturing him to step out. Sighing, Sehun
briefly muttered his goodbyes and hung up before exiting the telephone booth.
“Thanks.” He murmured and the watchman only pinned him with a glare. Sticking
his hands into the pockets of his cardigan, Sehun started back towards the
tower’s staircase. Kris had asked him to wait for him. Although he was not that
stoked for cake, he certainly was psyched about Kris’ company. Maybe things
will ease up between them. He also really hoped that Baekhyun would not be in
his room when he returned.
Just when he reached the stairs, he was stopped on his pace when he heard quick
high-pitched chatters coursing across the night air, disturbing the calm
ambience. Instead of heading up the stairs, Sehun peered past the lawn that
separated the two towers. A group of four men stood under the awning near the
tower across. One of them held a pipe in his hand. The other a dagger. Sehun
was not sure if it were a dagger or if it were his hand. He almost rubbed his
eyes to check. He could not hear what they were talking about, but they
certainly were discussing something. He wondered if he should inform the
watchman of this, but froze in place when one of the men almost looked up at
him.
That was when a hand cupped his face and covered his mouth from behind,
muffling the short grunt that Sehun exhaled out of shock. He was yanked back
and slammed against the wall by the staircase until the air was knocked out of
his lungs. The hand turned upside down, still clasped against his mouth. With
his eyes bulging out, Sehun felt himself shudder extensively when his eyes met
Kai’s ridiculously dark ones. Kai pressed a finger to his own lips, gesturing
Sehun to keep mum as he lowered his hand from Sehun’s face. It took Sehun a
moment to recover from the shock as he gasped for air. “You startled me.” He
hissed in a whisper, scowling. Kai was wearing a white t-shirt under a leather
jacket with his hair swept neatly.
“Don’t move.” He let out. Sehun winced when Kai’s breath grazed his lips. He
was so close that any inch closer would have made it impossible for even air to
pass between them.
“Why?”
“Shh.”
“Why should I—”
“Shut the fuck up.” Kai’s expression turned from annoyance to fierce in the
split of a second.
“Why are you such an arrogant wanker?!” Sehun snapped under his breath. “Let go
of me.”
Kai—being the asshole he was—grabbed both Sehun’s arms and pinned him to the
wall. This time, he could not even try to move. Kai’s grip on one hand was
stronger than Sehun’s strength in his whole body. “I am very well aware of the
extent of your stubbornness. But if you take a fancy to having your limbs
attached to your body, you stay where you are until I tell you to move.
Understand?”
His voice was very, very low. But every word rang in Sehun’s ears. When Kai
perked his head to check on the men from the lawn, Sehun decided to obey him.
Something was going on. He stood still with Kai’s body almost pressed against
his own. He could taste Kai’s breath on the tip of his tongue. He could feel
his heat that was radiating through the fabric of their clothes. Then suddenly,
they were all gone. Kai stepped back and drew in a sigh. Sehun shook the heat
off and cleared his throat. “What is going on?”
Kai took a step away to properly take a look at the lawn. The men were gone.
“Who were they?” Sehun inquired.
Kai shot him an annoyed look that clearly spelled, ‘This idiot won’t shut
up.’“Go to your room.”
Sehun scoffed, shaking his head. “Typical of you people.” He did not bother to
ask more as he started up the stairs but stopped when Kai grabbed hold of his
arm and spun him around to face him.
“What did you say?”
“What is wrong with you all?!” he shook Kai’s hand off his arm. “And who the
hell do you think you are?! You might be my instructor and yeah, sure you can
fail me this term. But you should know that you’re a stinking… pig! Go ahead
now. Bully me all you want. I don’t care.”
Kai was not responding. Not verbally at least. His eyebrows furrowed together,
forming a frown. Sehun did not know what he was waiting for but he felt
relieved. Very relieved. “You!” he squawked out of the sudden and glanced over
at the watchman who crossed the hallway before angrily signalling him to come.
The minute the watchman had hurried to his side, Kai’s hand mercilessly struck
the side of the watchman’s face before the man staggered to the side, almost
crashing the ground if it weren’t for Sehun who caught him. It felt as if it
were Sehun himself that had gotten the blow. His heart almost jumped out of his
chest when Kai had slapped the man. He was sure that even now his heart was at
his throat. “You were not supposed to let him roam these corridors at this
hour!” Kai shouted as the watchman shoved Sehun aside and straightened up to
stand properly. All that Sehun could do was gape at Kai with his eyes almost
hanging out. “The next time you fail to do your job, you’ll wish you were never
born. I will have you sacked and the next thing you know is that you and your
daughter will have no source of income to feed your pathetic lives. Do we have
a problem sticking to orders?!”
The watchman quickly shook his head. Sehun knew that he should be the one
shaking his head. He should have been the one who received that slap. “I-I-I…
won’t let this happen again, sir.” The watchman stuttered, swallowing hard.
“You ought to not to.” He turned to Sehun who retreated a step. “Get the fuck
back to your room.”
“You’re… unbelievable.” was all that Sehun could bring himself to say as he
turned on his heel and ran up the stairs without sparing Kai another look.
“Hey.” Kris chimed when Sehun burst into the room and when he slammed the door
shut with a ferocious force, Kris’ smile faltered. “Did something happen?”
Sehun slumped back against the door to catch his breath and languidly shook his
head. “Distract me.”
“Excuse me?”
“Distract me. Please.” He fluttered his eyes fast, trying to keep them focused
on Kris’ face but the world slowly began to ooze grey.
“Okay! Don’t space out like last time, okay?!” Kris crossed the room and caught
Sehun’s face into his hands. “Think of kittens. They should make you happy.”
Sehun cringed. “Why would they make me happy?”
“I dunno.” Kris shrugged desperately. “You seem like the type.”
His hands were warm against his cheeks. Sehun emptied his lungs with a slow
breath as a fragile grin formed on his lips. “I’m fine now.” He sighed, but
Kris didn’t drop his hands from his face. For an instant, Sehun was forced to
look into Kris’ eyes. Time slowed around them. The room got colder.
Kris stepped back and pulled his hands away from Sehun’s cheeks before stroking
his own hair, rubbing his nape. “We don’t have to talk about it if you…”
“Yeah. I don’t want to.” Sehun mumbled.
Kris nodded his head, chewing on his lip. “So, cake then?” he waved his hand at
the container that was waiting on the bed.
“You’re great at distraction.”
***** Secret Unfolds *****
“So tell me.” Kris unpretentiously forked the crème smeared lump of cake with a
disinterest, chin propped in one of his hands as he lied recumbent on his
stomach with more than half of his long legs dangling over the end of Sehun’s
bed. His sudden impassivity could have been the outcome of the sudden, but long
silence that stretched between them after almost an hour of gurgling laughter
and backstories which Sehun was surprisingly very much interested in listening
to. He sat before Kris with his legs folded—Indian style, the pillow squeezed
between his back and the headboard. “What’s your story?”
Sehun looked down at Kris’ half-sleepy eyes and casually sucked the crème off
the fork before prodding another bit of the semi-destroyed confectionery.
“There isn’t much to tell.” He muttered, attacking Kris’ piece of cake.
“Hey! Bugger off.” Kris defended his cake and their forks engaged themselves in
a momentary battle. Sehun gave up and retreated back to devouring his own piece
of cake. “Come on. I’ve told you my entire life story.”
“Uh. No, you didn’t.” Sehun pointed his fork at Kris’ face. “You just told me
about your obsession with lacrosse and your presumably annoying sister, whom
I’m sure you love.”
“That should say everything about me, no?”
Sehun smirked, taking another piece of the cake into his mouth. “You’re a
spoiled rich frat boy.”
“That sums up well enough.” Kris’ unbelievably charming smile irrevocably
fluttered Sehun’s heart. Licking his lips, Sehun settled his fork down in the
container and leaned back against the headboard. “What?”
“Nothing fun… ever happened in my life. Four walls, a lot of suppressed powers,
great parents. That’s all.”
“You think things will be different from now on?”
“Everything’s different here. Except that… I’m still a Freak.”
“Hey, I’m sorry.”
“No. It’s not just you.” he sighed. “I guess I’ll just have to adapt. Just like
how I’ve come to point of consuming egg now.”
“Oh, yeah. I remember you said you’re vegetarian. That’s tough ‘cause it’s meat
all the time here.”
“I know. The vending machine is my source of food now.”
“You also don’t… drink.” It sounded more like a question than a statement.
“Yeah. My doctor strongly recommended I don’t take alcohol. God knows what
happens if I’m not myself.”
“Hey, Kris?”
“Hm?”
“Did you… have it easy? Back home. To control your powers… to deal with… people
who weren’t like you?”
“The Pootles, you mean.” Kris rose to sit. “Yeah. My dad’s a judge. Sure I got
into a lot of trouble. But you know, being the judge’s son has its perks.
Almost got myself a first-class ticket to juvie, too.”
“What?! You got arrested?!”
A patch of embarrassed blood painted each of Kris’ cheeks as he dropped his
head, biting his lower lip. “Yeah.” He sighed. “This guy… he was fooling around
with one of my friends. He was… hurting her in ways… I can’t even say it.” He
swallowed. “I… well…”
“Hey.” Sehun called in the lowest voice possible and curled his hand around
Kris’. “It’s okay. We’ve all done bad things.”
Kris scoffed and brought his head up to meet Sehun’s concerned gaze. “That’s
the thing. It felt… amazing when I messed with the atoms and molecules of his
drink.” A small smirk tugged at his full lips. “I turned it into… toxic. He
suffocated and that was when I smashed his face to the bar’s counter. I was…
grinning when the cops cuffed me.”
Sehun felt the lump throb in his throat as his hand unconsciously tightened
around Kris’ fingers. He quickly withdrew it when he realized what he was
doing. “That’s… something.”
“Well, I wouldn’t say life is exactly easy here either. Heard some pretty awful
shit is going about.”
“Like what?”
“Mobsters.”
“What? Mobsters?”
Kris did not respond immediately. “I’m not entirely sure actually. People talk.
Word is that they steal Flairs. That’s why the non-elite Flairers are not
allowed to get out of their dorms after class hours.”
“Non-elite Flairers?”
“I mean the first rankers.”
“I’m not following.”
Kris exhaled exasperatedly. “You see, at the end of this term, you will be
classified into your ranks. Basically, first rankers is the strongest group.”
“What are you?”
“I’m a first ranker of course, Sehun.”
“Oh. Yeah. You… could turn… water into… poison.”
“And also the oxygen you’re breathing in, Sehun. Within seconds.”
“Wow. Now I see why you’re such a snob.”
“A snob?” Kris broke into a thundering laugh. “Are you fucking serious?! I know
I have class, but I’m not snobbish!”
“You let me be the judge of that, okay?” Sehun snorted and forked up the last
bit of the cake. Just when he brought it to his lips, it dropped right on his
knee in a sloppy wet splotch. He blinked at the mess, completely blank. How did
a solid cake just turn into a cake batter? He looked up at a beaming Kris.
“You… That’s the last one!” without a warning, he advanced for Kris’ cake
before his wrist was caught. The next thing he knew was him retaliating and
Kris bursting into a laugh as he tried to hold him back. “Let go!”
“Jesus Christ, you’re stronger than you look!” Kris rasped when Sehun pushed
himself up and stood on his knees, shoving Kris back. Their hands clasped
together and Kris tried to push him back, only that Sehun had an upper hand
since he was kneeling. “Fuck, Sehun!”
Their gasps rebounded the ceiling as Sehun tripped forward and Kris helplessly
fell back. Before Sehun could try and steady the both of them, he collapsed
onto Kris and they both lost their balance. Kris rolled off the bed, dragging
Sehun down with him until they crashed the floorboards with a brutal thud.
“Ugh…” Sehun breathed out, panting with his heart hammering against Kris’ chest
as he landed on top of him.
Kris groaned before whining a little when Sehun held onto the side of his
stomach to push himself up. “Fuck.” He gasped when Sehun’s palm crushed the
corner of his waist.
“Sorry, sorry.” He blurted out and stopped moving for a moment so they can calm
down a bit. He could feel Kris’ heart pounding against his own as their breaths
gushed out of them fiercely. Kris kept whimpering before he fell completely
silent when their jaded gazes joined. Sehun’s heart skipped a beat or two when
he realized he was almost sitting on Kris’ crotch. Kris’ eyes slowly moved to
Sehun’s quivering lips and Sehun could not help but wince when Kris licked his
own lips.
And then, “Get off me.” Kris urged. “You’re heavy as fuck.”
Sehun did not bother to stall another moment as he scurried off Kris and
flumped on the floor, staring at Kris who sat up, rubbing the back of his head,
wearing a crumpled expression. “I’m sorry.”
“No, don’t worry ‘bout it.” Kris flashed a short smile and got onto his feet
before extending a hand to Sehun. When Sehun took it, he pulled him up and
immediately started to clear Sehun’s bed. “I should let you sleep.”
“Yeah.” He retreated to the wardrobe to grab a fresh t-shirt and sweatpants.
“I’ve to be up early tomorrow. I’ve a shitload of weapons to clean, then I have
Evolutionary Biology. First class.” He sighed. “I think I’ve gotten on Shark’s
worst side.”
“What?” Kris arched a brow. “It could not have gotten any worse than you
calling him Shark, right?”
Sehun snorted. “How about calling him an arrogant wanker?”
“You did not.”
He shrugged. “I guess I’ll have to face the consequences of my actions.”
“What happened?”
“I’d rather not talk about it.” He started for the bathroom as Kris gaped at
him.
“Wait. Did you seriously call Kai an arrogant wanker?!”
“Yes. I also called him a stinking pig straight to his face.”
“Whoa.” He looked amused. “Oh Sehun, you are by far the most intriguing being
I’ve ever met.”
Sehun shook his head, trying to hide his obvious smile as he stepped into the
bathroom. He settled his clothes on the side of the sink before returning to
the door to close it. He paused with the door half pulled close when Kris
yanked his shirt and jeans off. Sehun gripped onto the edge of the door,
watching the muscles on Kris’ smooth back flex as Kris stripped to his boxers.
He could almost taste the blood from biting his lip too hard when Kris casually
slid into his bed and exhaled a loud sigh. Just when his eyes darted over to
Sehun, the younger quickly pulled the door shut. Stop this shit, Sehun. He’s
straighter than straight. And he’s 22! He sees you as nothing but a child.
 
 
 
The nascent rays of sun did not touch him today when he stepped out of the
shelter of the tower. That was because he was up at 5am! He hoped that Kai had
at least left the locale unlocked, otherwise it will be hell for him to go and
knock on Kai’s door at the teachers’ quarters at this ungodly hour. Since he
did not have any CDA class today, he’d rather not face Kai under any
unnecessary circumstances.
He jumped and almost gasped out loud before he came to a jerky standstill as
the woman screeched a little, clapping a hand to her chest and sobbed for air.
“Jesus Christ, you scared me!” she snapped and Sehun calmed his own racing
heart as he recognized the short-haired woman he had bumped into. Her high
cheekbones and slim lips complimented every bit of her perfectly-sculptured
face. Up close, she really was a very pleasant face to see early in the
morning.
“I’m really sorry.” He scanned her from top to toe. She was all freshened up,
clad in black and white striped work dress. “I didn’t… mean to, Mrs… Kim.”
She eyed Sehun as if conducting a perusal. “What are you doing out here at this
early?”
“Um… Master Kai ordered me to clean the weapons.”
“Oh.” She tucked her hair behind her ear and nodded. “Okay.” She simply slid
past Sehun. “You’re Sehun, right?”
“Yes.”
“Hm. The boy who dared to call Kai an arrogant wanker.”
Sehun could feel blood filling his cheeks and pounding in his ears as his chest
tightened. “I’m also… very, very sorry about that.”
She smiled a lopsided smile. “You ought to watch your back, kid.” With that,
she walked away. Sehun closed his eyes for a moment and sucked in a long
breath. How many more troubles are you going to get yourself into, Sehun?
Shaking his head, he proceeded to the CDA locale.
The door was unlatched. A dim yellow light poured out of the entrance and
Sehun’s stomach slightly churned. He still went close enough to peer into the
room and his windpipe was choked when he spotted Kai unwinding the hand wrap,
standing near the wrestling ring. Sweat beads trickled down his caramel brown
back, it beaded on his forehead and dripped from his chin. He was drenched in
sweat, shirtless with his tracksuit which looked so wet that it could need
wringing was sagging by his hips, exposing—no, showcasing—the sharp V on his
waistlines. Crystal pellets of sweat rolled down his delicious milk coffee set
of abs. The punching bag was still swinging ferociously as Kai pulled the hand
wraps off and shook his hands before flipping soaked hair back and out of his
forehead.
Holy fucking shit.
He did not realize that he was holding his breath until Kai looked up at him.
He puffed out a delirious breath and pulled away from the wrestling ring. “Come
in.”
Sehun almost shook his head and ran away, but he forced himself to step
forward. When he walked into the room, the thick stale smell of sweat hung in
the air and he could barely keep his eyes to himself. The thin trail of hair
that started from beneath the tracksuit’s strap up to Kai’s narrow navel was
also soaked with his sweat. Sehun did not know how long Kai had been training
for him to be bathed in this much of sweat. And yet, he did not look one bit
tired. “Uhm…” he started but his mouth was too dry to speak.
Kai leaned back on the edge of the table and stared at him. “You’ve got
something to say, Scrappy-Doo?”
Sehun scowled. “No.”
“No?”
“No. What you did last night was unacceptable. I’m not gonna apologize for
calling you an arrogant wanker. If anything, you should be the one to apologize
for what you did to the warden.”
Kai slowly nodded his head, grinding his jaw. “How old are you?”
“What?”
“How old are you?”
Sehun heard him the first time. He just did not understand why Kai was asking
the question. “16.”
“Do you know how old I am?”
“No.”
“I’m 29. So on which premise did you decide that you have more experiences than
me and that you know better than I?”
Sehun kept mum.
Kai stepped away from the table and crossed the room until he was standing only
a feet before Sehun. He did not utter a word for a long moment as he examined
every inch of Sehun’s face. It was almost impossible to keep his eyes on Kai’s
with Kai staring at him like he was a prey. “Take your jacket off.”
“Ex..excuse me?”
“You’re my partner, aren’t you? You ought to get into shape if you want me to
at least respect your eccentric insults for me.” He subtly strutted over to the
wrestling ring and he flipped into the ring effortlessly just by grabbing the
top rope ring. Sehun gaped at him for a short while as Kai landed on the stage
with an unexplainable balance and steadiness on his toes before taking his
standing. Sehun peeled his jacket off and squeezed himself between the two rope
rings. He did not even see Kai move before his neck was locked by Kai’s arm
from behind. Every last drop of air was knocked out of him when Kai choked him,
pressing Sehun’s back to his damp chest. “You won’t get to lift your pinky to
blow a storm in if I snapped your neck right this instant.” His sharp, hot
whisper stung Sehun’s ear before he shoved Sehun away. Stumbling away, Sehun
coughed and turned to face Kai with his hands clenched.
“What the hell?” he grunted, holding his neck.
“You’re angry? Why don’t you show it, huh?” Kai challenged. “Or are you too
soft?”
Sehun did not think twice before he plunged his fist into the side of Kai’s
face. “Ow!” he yelled, cupping his fist with his other hand after he felt his
knuckled pop upon the impact against Kai’s cheekbone. “Fuck! Ouch.” He gasped,
desperately shaking his hand as if to throw the pain away.
Kai only staggered a step to the corner of the ring. “Is that all you got,
Princess?”
“Fuck you.” Sehun spat and started to exit the wrestling ring. That was when
Kai grabbed and hauled him by his t-shirt. Their chests collided and Sehun
froze as his eyes widened. His hands helplessly clung onto Kai’s shoulders as a
reflex. He quickly retrieved his hands and pulled back.
“Maybe I should complain about your attitude.”
“Yeah? Maybe I should complain about yours.” Sehun retorted.
“Do you dare?”
“Hasn’t become apparent to you yet, Master? I’m not scared of you.”
Kai’s face remained indifferent as he stared at him without a word uttered.
“I did not come here to suffer this bullshit. All my life, I’ve only wanted to
have a choice. I finally do and you’re making things a hell for me!” Sehun
blurted out with angry tears welling up in his eyes. “Why are you picking on
me?! Something tells me it’s not because I called you a shark. Why do you hate
me so much?!”
“Why? Cause I lost my family because of you.” Kai spat through his grit teeth
and everything fell silent for a moment except Sehun’s breath.
“Wh-what?” Sehun laughed. “Okay. Now it’s clear to me. So you’re a complete
nutjob.”
Kai wiped his face and palmed his forehead. “Fuck.” He hissed and pulled
himself out of the ring before marching out of the room as fast as his heavy
feet could move.
***** Miss Titty Pip *****
“How many of you know who Charles Darwin is?”
Sehun raised his hand along with ten other students. The teacher, Titty Pip
(her parents must have been out of their minds when they chose the name for
her) gave the raised hands a once-over, considering her pick. She lazily pushed
her gold-framed glasses up the bridge of her ridiculously sharp nose and
squinted her hazel eyes behind the hippie glasses. She had a small physique
with a short stature and a horrible fashion sense. When Sehun first entered the
locale in the morning, he found her squatting in the corner of the room. He
immediately thought that she was some homeless woman taking refuge in the
classroom before he realized she was setting up a mouse trap. Then he thought
that she was a cleaning lady. But now, he just felt sad for her.
She was just raising her hand when the classroom’s door was slammed open and a
wild Chanyeol hurtled in, wrapping his muffler around his neck. “Sorry, I’m
late!” he screeched, panting hard. Sehun glanced over at Baekhyun at the next
desk who just shrugged, wearing a perplexed expression.
“First class and you’re already tardy, mister…?” Miss Pip crossed her arms over
her breastless chest and tried her best to scowl, but it only made her look
strangely ugly but adorable.
“Uh… Chanyeol.” He looked half seas over with his nose red as Rudolph’s. The
dark circles under his eyes broadcasted his exciting previous night. “I’m
sorry.” He muttered and hurried to the empty seat next to Sehun on the desk.
“Hey.”
“Hey.” Sehun snorted, sliding the hand-out toward him.
“Thanks. What did I miss?”
Nothing much. He smiled.
“So, then. Kyungsoo?” she called out from the list she had on her desk. “Do you
know who Charles Darwin is and what his theory was?” she questioned, walking up
to the student’s desk with a wooden ruler in her hand.
Sehun looked over his own shoulder only to meet an extremely petite boy who
straightened up in his seat and cleared his throat. “Um… uh…” the boy was
staring at the teacher like she made no sense. “Eh…”
When Sehun casually looked over Chanyeol, he was met with Chanyeol’s
incomprehensively annoyed scowl. He was glaring at the boy named Kyungsoo. And
then he raised his hand out of the sudden when Kyungsoo was still stuttering.
“He’s the father of evolutionary theory.” He answered when the teacher did not
notice him. Miss Pip turned to lour at him. “His theory was that those who
adapt best to the environment will have a greater chance of surviving, thus
having offspring and passing on their genes of their offspring. His theory of
natural selection explains how species acquire adaptive characteristics to
survive in an environment.”
“I did not ask you, Chanyeol.” She sighed disappointedly.
“Well, you got the answer you wanted, right?” he flashed an insincere smirk
before lifting his shoulders.
Miss Pip shook her head with a clenched jaw and started for the blackboard. “As
Chanyeol mentioned, he invented the theory of natural selection.”
“You’re in her bad books.” Sehun whispered, leaning towards Chanyeol who was
still staring at the boy sitting behind them. He eventually turned away and
heaved a sigh.
“Yeah. But it looks like someone’s in a foul mood today.” He arched a brow at
Sehun.
He hung his head, chewing on his lower lip. Yeah.  I was polishing goddamn
daggers for three hours. And… things got a tad out of hand in the morning with
Kai.
“I can see that. I’m sorry.”
Sehun looked up at Chanyeol again. I’m tired. He let out a heavy breath. He’s
insane. Like one thousand per cent loony. He said I destroyed his family or
something.
Chanyeol stiffened as his jaw fell slacking but he quickly recovered and
averted his gaze to Baekhyun who was watching them with a deep frown. He jerked
his chin, gesturing a ‘what’ at him and Baekhyun looked away. “What’s his
problem?”
Sehun shrugged, shaking his head. He doubted that he’d want to snitch on either
of them. Besides, he already had enough on his plate to deal with. That was if
Chanyeol did not already know because Baekhyun certainly cannot keep his mind
locked forever whenever Chanyeol’s looking.
Where were you last night? He smirked and Chanyeol mirrored it.
“Nothing like that happened. Please.” He scoffed.
When the class ended, Baekhyun caught up to Sehun and Chanyeol on the corridor.
“So you were with Heva last night?” he blurted out, draping an arm over Sehun’s
shoulders. Chanyeol pinned him with cold look.
“None of your business actually.”
“Oh. Come on, Chanyeol. I thought we’re friends.”
Chanyeol came to a halt and pulled his muffler away. “No, Baekhyun. We’re not.
We’re just classmates and roommates. I’m sorry but I don’t befriend a
manipulative bastard who uses people to his own advantage.”
Baekhyun’s jaw dropped as his eyes widened.
“Yeah. You think I don’t know about your dirty little secret?” Chanyeol
snorted.
“I’m sorry… but what’s going on here?” Sehun inquired, completely lost.
“Why don’t you tell him Baekhyun?” Chanyeol cocked his head, waving a hand at
Sehun. “Why don’t you tell him how you manipulated your own stepmother to sleep
with your brother? You better think twice before bad-mouthing someone next
time. You’ve a problem with me, deal it with me.” With that, he strutted away,
pushing his hair out of his forehead.
Sehun let out a shaky breath before facing Baekhyun with hot cheeks. “I swear
to God, I didn’t tell him anything.”
“No.” Baekhyun swallowed, lowering his head. “He read my mind. It wasn’t you.”
he turned on his heel.
“Hey, Baekhyun… I… I’m sorry.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“I’ll be the last person to judge, Baekhyun. It’s okay. None of us is a saint.”
“No, I seriously doubt that, Sehun.” he quickly turned and walked away with
bloodshot eyes. Rubbing the back of his neck, Sehun began to wend his way to
the cafeteria. He paused himself when he spotted the cheering crowd near the
tree on the yard near the corridor. There were giggles, there were screams. But
mostly, there were rounds of ferocious claps. Out of curiosity, he climbed down
the steps of the corridor before he heard a girl’s ear-splitting cry. Everyone,
outside the group of seniors, stopped on their tracks as they gaped at the
still laughing crowd. Just when he was about to make a move, Kai stomped past
him and the seniors made way for him to pass through. He held his hands in
fists and Sehun almost winced at his brutally squared shoulders which showed
how enraged Kai was. Unlike this morning, he was fully dressed. But
surprisingly, he was wearing a maroon shirt, tucked into his black jeans,
sleeves rolled up to his elbows. As the crowd moved aside, Sehun spotted a girl
amidst them, squatting on the grass like a frog with tear-stained red cheeks
and her skirt raised to almost her thighs. They were bullying her. The instant
Kai had helped her back to her feet and handed her the bag and books, he turned
to one of the seniors who was standing right next to the girl. The entire area
fell into utter shock and silence when Kai grabbed the boy’s shirt’s collars
before his palm mercilessly struck a side of the boy’s face.
Sehun felt his soul being ripped out of him when he recognized the slap. Only
this time, it was much harder and louder. The boy shoved Kai back with tears
brimming in his eyes before he lifted his hand. Sehun recognized the boy. It
was the guy who was showing his power off on the first day he arrived to this
academy. Within a split of a second, the boy’s hand was cupping a ball of fire.
But before he could do anything with it, Kai effortlessly grabbed his wrist and
twisted it hard enough for the fire to be extinguished. “Ow!” he yapped as Kai
clutched his shirt at the nape. He gave the boy another hard slap on the back
of his head and shoved him to walk.
“If I see any act of bullying here again, I can assure you your fate will be
far worse than little Asshole on Flames here.” He spat at everyone who was
watching, gawking.
That’s ironic ‘cause you’re the biggest bully here. Sehun mentally scoffed, but
he was too traumatized by what he had just seen. Kai shot him a short look as
he dragged the boy towards the headmistress’ office and Sehun did not look
away. If there was anyone who could give him some answers here, it would be
Headmistress Dillan. Kai certainly would not have said that he lost his family
because of Sehun for nothing. There was definitely a solid reason as to why he
was being treated this way by Kai.
“Sehun?”
“Jesus Christ!” Sehun jumped, dropping his textbook. Kris immediately picked it
up before Sehun could even move. “You scared me.”
“Yeah, why?” Kris chuckled, handing Sehun the book before looking around him.
“What’s happening here?”
“I’ll talk to you later. I’ve to go.” He began to shift but Kris caught his
wrist. For a moment, Sehun vacantly stared at his hand gripping his wrist
before Kris withdrew it.
“Hey, the boys are going out tonight. To the town. Do you wanna…”
Sehun blinked. “I’ve a curfew.”
“We can sneak out.”
The slaps flashed before his eyes again. He gulped. “I don’t think that’s a
good idea, Kris.” He pulled away and Kris grabbed hold of his arm. This time,
Sehun outright scowled at him before yanking his arm back.
“What do you want, Kris?” he hissed under his breath. “Why don’t you just go
and hang around with your elite friends? Like the ones that love to bully
others?”
Kris’ eyebrows furrowed into a frown. “Hey, why you’re overreacting now,
Sehun?”
“Forget about it. I’m not going. Sorry.” He muttered and walked away.
He stopped outside the headmistress’ office when he faintly heard Kai’s voice
from inside. He was not sure why he lashed out at Kris like that. No, he did.
He was not sure why Kris was even paying him this sort of attention. After what
happened last night, he needed to maintain some distance between them.
The door was shoved open all of a sudden and Sehun straightened up when Kai
burst out of it. He froze altogether when he conceived Sehun’s presence. “Came
here to complain?” he asked without any readable expression on his face.
Sehun tautened his jaw. “No.” he spat through his grit teeth.
“Really?” Kai crossed his arms.
“I know that you’re not going to explain shi… anything.” He quickly amended
himself. “So I’m hoping that Headmistress Dillan would.”
“Explain what exactly?” his poker face was what drove Sehun over the edge.
“Everything! Why are you playing dumb?” he snapped under his breath.
“Everything that happened last night. And what happened in the morning.”
“What happened in the morning?” he cocked a brow.
“You… you… we… you said that you lost your family because of me.”
“Are you dreaming? Finally losing it, Scrappy-Doo?”
“What?”
Kai did not make a reply as he scoffed and turned on his heel. Gripping his
fists, Sehun turned to the office door when Headmistress Dillan walked out of
it with the Asshole on Flames. “Headmistress Dillan.” He rasped.
“Sehun? What is it?” she seemed flustered.
“Can I… talk to you for a minute?”
“Ah. Not right now. I have to deal with this student. If it’s urgent, consult
Kai, will you?”
Sehun smiled and nodded with his stomach churning.
 
                                     * * *
 
“Isn’t it a little too early for stargazing?” Chanyeol’s voice sent a jolt down
Sehun’s spine when it destroyed the silence he was enjoying, perched on the
railings of the corridor. The evening sky was laid above him like a grey
blanket with faded dots of burning rocks embedded in it.
Sehun closed his book with his pen snuck between the pages and grinned up at
Chanyeol who took his seat next to him on the railings. “Hey, stranger.”
“Sorry about this morning.”
Sehun nodded with pursed lips. “Yeah… maybe you shouldn’t have burst like
that.”
“What did Baekhyun tell you?” he asked with a frown.
“He just thought that you’re weird, Chanyeol. Hundreds of people think that I’m
weird.”
“Yeah. I wasn’t myself this morning.”
Sehun dropped his head, drawing in a sigh. “Hey. Why did you help that boy in
our Evolutionary Biology?”
Chanyeol snapped his lips shut and looked ahead into nothing.
“Chanyeol?”
“Hey, you’re Scrappy-Doo?” Sehun almost fell off the railings when a student
showed up out of nowhere.
“What?!”
“Master Kai’s looking for you at CDA locale.” he blurted out before vanishing
into thin air. Sehun gasped and rose to his feet.
“Oh my God!”
“Teleportation. Why is Shark looking for you?”
Sehun rubbed his temples, dragging in a long breath. “God knows what he wants
now.” He sighed and picked his books up. “See you later.”
“Good luck, man.”
He did not stall a single minute as he broke into a jog towards the CDA locale
on the other building. When he reached it, he stopped outside the room to catch
his breath before knocking on the opened door. Kai was sitting at his desk with
his face buried in his palms. He looked up at Sehun, blinking his droopy tired
eyes slowly. “Come inside.” He got off the chair and roosted on the edge of the
desk. “I’m sorry about last night.” He said and Sehun came to a standstill.
“Are you… talking to me?” his eyes widened. Kai threw him an unamused glare.
“I shouldn’t have yelled at you.”
“You yell at everyone.”
“True.” He shrugged and picked up a file from the desk before getting off it.
As he edged closer, Sehun wanted to retreat, but he stood his ground. “Here.”
He held the file out.
“What is this?”
“Dillan wanted me to give you this. These are you assessment criteria.”
Sehun took the folder and flipped it open. “What should that mean?”
“That is your golden ticket to passing this term.”
He realized he was gaping only after a few seconds. “Is this…”
“Yes.”
“Why are you… giving me… this?”
“So that you won’t fail.”
Sehun was at a loss for words. His chest filled with an insane amount of
appalment. He dropped his bag and books onto the floor. “You can’t be serious.
What the hell is this?! Many students fail! You don’t go around, handing them
the mark schemes, do you?!”
“You’re smart, Snow White. You know better than to let a word out about this.”
“You’re not answering my question!” he slammed the folder back onto Kai’s
chest. “Why this special treatment?!”
“You don’t want it? Fine. Leave.” He began to turn around before Sehun grabbed
hold of his arm and forcefully yanked him. Kai retaliated quick and clutched
Sehun’s hand that caught his arm but he quickly released it. “Why the fuck are
you driving me crazy like this?!”
“You sure do know how to take the words out of my mouth! I’m not scared of you,
okay?!” that was a lie. Sehun was very much scared of him. But above all, he
was stubborn. “So why don’t you tell me what’s going on?!”
“I won’t hesitate to hurt you, do you get me?”
“Fine, then hurt me. But you won’t. ‘Cause you’re apparently protecting me. Is
that not right?”
“Protectingyou? Don’t flatter yourself. Get the fuck outta here.”
“No!”
“For fuck’s sake.” Kai grunted, rubbing his forehead. “You’re a tough kid,
aren’t you?”
“I’m not moving an inch until you tell me what’s going on.”
“All right.” Kai tossed the file back on the desk.
“Kai!” Sehun gasped when Kai bent and curled his arm around his calves before
lifting him off the ground. He was thrown over Kai’s shoulder and Sehun lost
all his breath with Kai’s razor-like shoulder pressed against his abdomen.
“What the hell!”
“You ought to learn a lesson.”
“Let go!” Sehun almost elbowed Kai in the back of his head but he was paralyzed
when his back came in contact with the puddle of mud on the lawn outside the
locale. He was hurled directly into the puddle and the impact felt like it had
broken a bone or two. His hair was bathed with mud and it seeped into his pants
and shirt at the back. Kai leaned over the railings with his hands clasped
together and elbows propped on the railings with a victorious smirk playing on
his lips as Sehun struggled to get out of the mud.
“Now you’re right where you belong, little piggy.”
“Fuck you!” Sehun pulled himself onto his feet, considering to drag a
thunderbolt down and strike Kai. But instead, he leapt over the steps and
shoved Kai back with his muddy hands. Kai broke into a laughter for the first
time and Sehun stood stock-still for a second. He had never really heard Kai
laugh. “What kind of sadistic bastard are you?! What kind of teacher throws his
student into a freaking mud?!”
“One of a kind?” Kai snickered, eyeing Sehun from top to toe.
Sehun clenched his jaw so hard that it almost hurt and grabbed the collars of
Kai’s shirt before hauling him close. He did not think twice when he rubbed his
chest and the sides of his torso all over Kai shirt at the front. Kai’s
laughter died out of the sudden and he pulled away from Sehun with a frantic
jerk. They paused for a moment as Kai stared at Sehun with deeply painted pink
cheeks and a harsh frown. Sehun swallowed when he realized what he had just
done. “You… you’re a jerk.” He concluded in a whisper and went back into the
locale to grab his bag and books before vamoosing away from there.
 
***** His Brutish Attention *****
“The Spring Ball is one of the very few formal parties that take place in
FLAC.” A slim-waisted,   voluptuous-hipped chimed, lifting her sun hat from her
ginger-haired head as she swayed her way into the locale—in red strappy wedges
that poked Sehun’s eyes as much as her red lips did. “One of my own favourites,
too.” She placed her handbag on the table next to the gramophone.  Her chili
hot lips stretched a little, hinting a racy smirk as her playful emerald eyes
coursed over the boys, completely ignoring the other gender. Her hair was an
asset in its own right, along with every other part of her body which her black
sundress and leather jacket totally made justice to. She looked no older than
any of the students in the ballroom. The elaborateness of her youth put even
Sehun to shame. She was exuberant with wild vibes, elegant looks and young
adventures.
All students gathered in a misshaped group, boys with their jaws slacked and
girls with their eyes widened. Sehun had not seen this many girls in his other
classes. Especially not in CDA. In fact, there were only boys in his CDA class.
Maybe there was another class exclusively for girls. Chanyeol was not in this
class. He probably had another teacher. Baekhyun was busy ‘hanging out’ with
Tinkerbell and it would not take a genius to realize that he was deliberately
and desperately avoiding Sehun after what happened between him and Chanyeol the
other day.
“Welcome to Mastering Arts. I am Professor Hani.” The teacher grabbed his
attention again just when it began to wander off. “Although not many of you
here have artistic Flairs, hopefully this class will bring out the artist
within you and will help you discover new interests as well as fields of
undiscovered talents. This will be a great kick start for you to join the music
and dance society. Or even participate in competitions at the end of this
semester. I can see that all of you have pretty faces.” Her lopsided grin had
some of the boys sighing. “All handsome-handsome and pretty-pretty. Now as I
said earlier, the Spring Ball is upon us. This is the one time where you get to
dress in pretty clothes and fight your friends for the hottest date.”
One of the boys raised his hand at once. “Dibs on you, Miss Hani?!” he
hollered.
Professor Hani’s red lips smiled. Her slender fingers soothed the edge of the
table. “That, I’m afraid, is not possible. And… it’s missus.”
Almost all of them gasped in disbelief. Some, in denial.
“Now, class. How many of you know how to waltz?”
No response.
Professor Hani heaved a sigh, that too quite girlishly. “Well, we’ll need to
fix that. I’ll pair you guys up first. Of course, they don’t have to
necessarily be your date to the ball. So, make sure you ask someone out. Don’t
go stag. It’s not… admirable.” She scoffed.
Sehun stood in the group, silent as ever. Tired of the day. And unmotivated to
greet what’s to come. But most of all, he did not want this class to end even
though he saw absolutely no relevance of this class and how it could affect his
Flair. That was due to the fact that he had CDA with Kai next. The last time he
had seen him, Kai had tossed him into a puddle of mud and laughed at him. He
laughed. Sehun did not know that the man was capable of such a thing. And then,
he found Kai flushed and flustered for a reason Sehun could not uncover.
“You.” her perfectly toned voice echoed in the ballroom. Sehun looked up in a
daze. “Are you okay with pairing with her?” she waved her hand to the tallest
girl in the room. Sehun nodded and smiled before walking over to the girl who
mirrored his smile.
“I’m Sehun.” he introduced himself and she muttered her name in return,
casually tucking her hair behind her ear. Yeah. Sehun definitely did not want
this class to end.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
The instant he exited the hall, he almost ran into Chanyeol who caught his arm
and squeezed it hard enough to crush some bones. “Chanyeol.” Sehun rasped.
“Where have you been all day?”
“I had a class.” He murmured, stuffing a book into his bag. “Off to CDA?”
“Yeah. You?”
“Same. Shall we?”
He could not help but let out an exhausted breath. “Yeah. I guess.”
As they started, Chanyeol pinned him with a smile. “Oh… kay. So your Mastering
Arts class seems fun. I can’t wait for mine.”
Sehun snorted. “Stop reading my mind. It’s not so fun to tell you stuff when
you’ve already read everything on my mind.”
“Okay, okay. So tell me. Why aren’t you excited for CDA?”
“Are you?”
“No. But I’m not oozing grey vibes that clearly spell my disinterest. What
happened? Tell me or I’ll—”
“I… got into a… weirdfight with Kai.” Sehun mumbled.
“A… fight?”
“Yeah, like… physical.”
“What?!”
Sehun quickly shook his head. “No. Let’s not talk about it. It’s going to be
really awkward seeing him again.”
“Well, I’m in for some entertain.” He nudged Sehun on the arm and threw him the
smuggest smile.
“Hey. I… wanted to ask you. How are things between you and Baekhyun?”
They paused for a moment as the bell tolled, signalling the noon. “Why?”
Chanyeol asked, cordially.
“You just lashed out at him and… no explanation?”
Chanyeol scoffed. “Sehun. He thinks I’m a dodgy guy. I don’t know why. I knew
it from the moment I came back to the room late.”
“How do you do that anyway?” Sehun asked, rather sceptically. “Aren’t there
curfews?”
“Well.” Chanyeol shrugged. “I have my ways. That’s not the point. The point is
he tried to brainwash you.”
“I’m not a child, Chanyeol. He can’t just… brainwash me.”
“Whatever it is, I don’t like that guy. It’s terrible enough that I have to
share a room with him.” he grunted as they edged the locale.
“But what did you mean by… you know… that he manipulated his stepmother?”
“It’s just a secret he carries. Not a safe one, but a strong one.” He rolled
his eyes. “Sadly he couldn’t keep it away from me. He—”
“No.” Sehun stopped him. “Never mind. I don’t wish to know. It’s his secret.
And maybe, Chanyeol. You should respect other people’s privacy, too.”
Chanyeol’s jaw dropped. “Oh, come on, Sehun! Are you serious? You seriously
think I’m that guy?”
“Well, you certainly don’t seem to be considering how people would feel having
their minds laid out open whenever you’re around and they can’t help it.”
Chanyeol pursed his lips as they came to a halt before the opened doors of the
locale which was already filled with their classmates. Then, he bowed his head,
clenching his jaw. “All right.” He said decidedly. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize to me, Chanyeol. I just don’t want my life here to be as bad
as it was back home. I wanna be around friends and I want to hang out with you.
But I can’t do that unless I’m sure that I can keep some of my secrets to
myself.”
“Okay, okay. No more mind-reading unless necessary. I promise.”
That earned Chanyeol a short smile from Sehun before they walked into the room.
He had to fight the urge to hide behind Chanyeol the second his eyes landed on
Kai who was talking to one of the students, codenamed Dandelion. Sehun could
not think of a reason for why he thought Kai looked so brutal with a cruel
frame even when he was in training pants and a simple black t-shirt. He was not
sure if he hated Kai himself or if he hated the idea of how much control Kai
had over everyone, especially him. He was unreadable. Not even Chanyeol could
entirely figure him out, even with the access to Kai’s mind. Sehun had planned
to meet the headmistress this evening after classes. But not regarding Kai this
time. He wished to know why the headmistress would simply just hand him the
criteria for passing the term. Most students would have gladly accepted it.
However, Sehun was not most students. Even the idea of him treated special
appalled him. And to make things worse, he had absolutely no clue as to why he
was being treated specially. It boggled his mind. He was far too tired last
night to confront anyone. Not Kai, not Headmistress Dillan, not even Kris.
Yeah, it was not every day that he got hurled into mud.
Kai tore his attention from Dandelion and shifted it to Sehun who stopped in
his tracks and quickly averted his gaze to the unlit lightbulb that hung above
him. You could have complained about what he did yesterday. Sehun mentally
sighed. But you didn’t. Why? Too scared? Or is he growing on you? Perhaps
you’re liking this brutish attention he’s giving you? Sehun… what are you
doing?
The questions rolled in his cold stomach, avoiding the answers. He dropped his
head when Kai clapped his hands together to pull their concentration. “All
right.” His tone was harsh and unusually too serious. The hint of humour and
sarcasm in his voice was gone today. “Today, we will begin your first training.
The foundation of your combat skills which will be shaped in the course of the
next few months. Therefore, I expect you to show up fully prepared for each
class. You’re supposed to wear your training gears. That is, clothes that you
can move in. I’m not sure you skinny jeans and lady panties would help. I’ll
excuse you for today but for the next class, should you fail to come well-
prepared, you will be the next to polish the weapons.” A glance was shot to
Sehun, who had not yet finished with the task he was assigned with. The
punishment actually. But fortunately, Kai did not insult him for not having
showed up in the morning to have the rest of the weapons polished. He cleared
his throat and turned his attention back to the rest. “Although you all have
your Flairs, your attackers might not always be the most honourable Flairers.
Partner up.” he ordered and everyone moved at once. Sehun retreated to the
corner to settle his bag before returning to the group. He gulped when he
realized he was standing out like a sore thumb while everyone had paired up.
But Chanyeol and Baekhyun looked even more uncomfortable standing next to each
other. Kai let out an audible sigh, looking over at Sehun. “Get the tonfa.”
He just talked to me. Sehun’s stomach turned. He hurried to the weapon rack and
grabbed a tonfa. When he stopped before Kai, he was forced to meet Kai’s eyes.
He’s looking right at me. I did not only call him an arrogant wanker, but I
also messed him up with my mud yesterday. He’s going to kill me. He’s
definitely going to shove this tonfa down my throat and watch while I choke to
death. He handed Kai the tonfa.
“Do you expect me to ride this up your ass?”
Sehun’s heart sank as his eyes widened. The class roared out a laughter. “Ex-
excuse me?”
“You’re supposed to get a pair of tonfa so that we can duel.” Kai explained
slowly as if explaining to an elementary kid.
Gritting his teeth, Sehun went and grabbed another tonfa. He was not dragging
his feet on purpose. They just would not move faster. The instant he came to a
stop, a strong and sharp gush of air sliced a side of his neck and Sehun went
stock-still, completely paralyzed with Kai’s tonfa ghosting over his neck. It
did not even touch him, but the attempted blow was unexpected and Sehun was
sure that Kai almost smacked him with it.
“First move should always be for the neck. Be it a knife or a stick.”
Baekhyun raised his hand. “Wouldn’t it be smarter if it’s the eye?”
Kai shot him an unamused look. “It’s easier to block if you’re attacked
straight.” He answered without any sort of crude remarks. His eyes were on
Sehun again. “Go.”
“Huh?”
“Attack.” He said.
“Oh.” Sehun lifted his tonfa.
“Wait.” Kai kicked the Sehun’s feet apart. “Take your jacket off.”
Sehun obeyed. Surprisingly, he wanted to obey Kai today. It was not out of
fear. He was not sure why he was seeing Kai in a totally different light now
even after how much of a jerk Kai had been yesterday.
With his legs spread a little, he stood with more stability and he gripped the
tonfa. Kai’s eyes were low, fixated on Sehun’s shoes. “What are you waiting
for?” he snapped and that was when Sehun brought his tonfa up and struck for
Kai’s neck without any warning. He did not even get as close as five inches
when Kai caught his wrist and gave it a brutal grip before Sehun dropped the
tonfa. “Great.” Kai sighed. “Drop your weapon. Definitely a spectacular way to
get yourself a one-way ticket to Loserville.”
He tried. He tried really hard to not to frown and failed, quite miserable.
“Sorry.” He uttered under his breath and turned around, scouring the floor for
the tonfa he had dropped. It had landed right behind him and drawing in a long
breath, he bent down to pick it up. He was instantly aware of his rear brushing
a part of Kai before he heard a hoarse groan.
“Ugh, fuck.” Kai hissed, almost inaudibly that if it were any quieter, Sehun
would not have heard him say it and stepped away, altogether from Sehun in a
rather frenzy manner. Sehun straightened up at once and faced a set of hot
cheeks. Even his beautifully tanned skin could not hide the blush. Kai,
however, did. He immediately ordered the rest to practice handling the tonfa
before excusing himself. Sehun blinked vacantly, being the only one who noticed
the brief blush Kai showed, as Kai stormed out of there in a hurry.
***** Out of Time *****
He did not bother with furtiveness or any form of quietude when he
uncontrollably threw himself into his room with heedless laxity before
carelessly slamming the unlockable door shut.
“Jesus Christ.”
Sehun twirled around to find a startled Kris on his desk, donning a pair of
spectacles with a pen frozen between his fingers. His eyes were bulged behind
the frames of his glasses. Sehun already suspected Kris of wearing contact
lenses, but seeing him in not-so-geeky glasses was not exactly a sore to the
eyes. It was just… out of place. He murmured an apology and proceeded to his
side of the room. His bag and books were shoddily tossed onto the desk which
already harboured a slapdash mess of note sheets and textbooks. He was aware of
the heat of Kris’ grim frown radiating on his back as he flumped on the edge of
his bed to unlace his shoes.
“Bad day?” Kris discreetly inquired when a moment of tensed silence had
progressed between them. It would not take an avid observer to interpret
Sehun’s slipshod laziness as an outcome of an ill-omened day. Sehun passed him
a look of stoicism, rose to his full height and stripped down to nothing but
his pants. It was almost impossible to not to pay heed to how fast Kris had
averted his eyes to his book on the desk, although Sehun was almost too sure
that all of his roommate’s attention still lingered on his newly bared body.
“Since day one.” Sehun emitted a sigh of forbearance, rolling the shirt he had
worn for two consecutive days into a ball to be disposed at the laundry wing
later along with his socks. “Not a day has passed without some sort of
misfortune on my account.”
“Certainly there must have been upsides?” he looked to Sehun with a faint smile
skating on his ripen lips. He seemed like a kid anticipating a toffee for his
obedience. Maybe it was just exhausted Sehun, but this jejune and naïve side of
Kris was almost never seen. Or maybe it was the glasses that made him look as
innocent as Mr and Mrs Coberton’s doll-like daughter whom Sehun had only seen
twice in his entire life of being her neighbour. When Kris noticed the inane
stare Sehun was pinning him with, he probably out of sudden consciousness
ripped his glasses off his face with more force than necessary. He cleared his
throat and bit his lip as if waiting for an answer.
Sehun saw no need to give him one, especially not after a day full of unnerving
strangeness, but he decided on pleasing at least one person before the day
ended. “I suppose.” was the only honesty that he conjure up and Kris did not
look let down. Instead, his lips purposefully flashed another juvenile grin.
“I… hope I’m a part of those upsides, then.” He sighed, leaning back in his
wooden chair. A dull smile formed on Sehun’s greyed face. He suddenly felt
exposed, standing shirtless before the guy he had made sheep eyes at on the
first day of meeting him. With the heat of his blood rushing to his face, Sehun
started for the insurance of the bathroom, but stopped when Kris shot up from
his seat. “Hey, I was…” he paused, scratching the back of his neck. “Wondering
if you…”
“I am interested if you have some Caramel Slices snuck in your wardrobe this
time.”
“No.” Kris sniggered. “You have a sweet tooth, don’t you.” he crossed the room
but awkwardly stopped several long feet before Sehun. “Have you been to the
watch tower?”
“I’m not sure I’ve been to any part of the academy except the locales and
halls.”
“Good. The stars during springtime are brighter than diamonds and the watch
tower is usually abandoned except when Suho brings some chicks over to…” he
trailed off as if he had realized the presence of an underage in the room. “Do
you… want to go?”
Sehun was not sure how stargazing with Kris, who was almost as readable as
three-year-old looking at an ice-cream cart with his mind plainly bared
out—completely in contrast to Kai who was exceptionally good at keeping his
thoughts locked away—would make his day any better. He had unnecessarily poked
his nose into Chanyeol and Baekhyun’s affair and quickly regretted it right
after. Something he did drove his stone-headed instructor out of the class and
the man did not return until there were only fifteen minutes to spare. While
his classmates practiced, or to say the least, played with tonfas, he was
sitting on the edge of the wrestling stage since his partner had fled without
an excuse. When Kai came back, he demonstrated the handling of the tonfas
without Sehun’s sloppy assistance this time. He looked… mad. Mad as a hornet,
fast as a stag, powerful as a horse. It did take Sehun’s breath away, but every
blow Kai’s tonfas presented onto the air felt like it was intended for Sehun.
He left the locale with nothing but acid in his lungs. What did he even do to
infuriate Kai this time? He had to forsake his plans of meeting the
headmistress regarding the criteria issue in order to hold onto the last
silvers of endearment—no, endurance Kai had towards him. If it were not for
what happened yesterday, Sehun would not have given two damns about Kai. But he
now knew that Kai was also capable of laughing. It was stupid, yes. But Sehun
somehow saw some kind of compassion beneath all that hardness and resistance
that Kai was preening on as if they were a sort of protection to shield him
from the outside world. Sehun knew how that felt. Kai’s frame of mind was not
far flung from Sehun’s own.
“So?”
“Uh.” Sehun snapped out of it. He considered Kris’ offer for a minute before
carefully saying, “I’m past my curfew.”
“Don’t worry about it. We’ll be quiet and I’ll make sure that old warden
doesn’t catch us.”
It was not the warden Sehun was worried about.
“If you don’t have the spirit—”
“I’ll go.” Sehun cut Kris off.
“Really?” his face lit up and for a moment, he looked nothing like the rugged,
cocky upperclassman who prided himself on the line of girls and boys alike that
drooled over his mere company.
“Yeah. Yeah. Let me freshen up and we can go.”
“Okay.”
 
 
 
Kris was one of the very few people in this academy who seemed genuine about
every one of his intentions. Be it good or bad. And he was not a complicated
man. Sehun did not ogle Kris’ butt as they climbed up the spiral staircase
leading up to the watch tower this time. His jacket was doing a pathetic job at
keeping him warm in this bitterly cold spring night. It was his fault, though.
Kris had warned him of the cold. He looked ahead and studied Kris’ frame from
the back. No. He wasn’t a complicated man. But just a boy who was struggling
behind the closed doors of a suffocating closet. As Sehun already knew—Kris was
easily readable. He was either experimenting with his own self’s discoverable,
yet prohibited sides or he was simply looking for newfound excitements that
would sell well amidst his group of élite Flairers. Or both. And for him, Sehun
was possibly a tool for his intentions. Not that Sehun would complain. He liked
tolerating Kris’ company, if not entirely appalled by the fact that he was
becoming Kris’ personal catalyst in experimenting with his sexuality. He was
also a very handsome boy, brimming on manhood and not a single being with
senses in this universe could deny Sehun’s attraction towards him. But that was
it. The attraction never went beyond sexual covetousness. Being sixteen years
old did not sway Sehun’s mind into thinking that he could fall in love with a
guy who could barely decide what he wanted for breakfast, let alone daringly
admit that he was not the ‘ladies’ man’ as most of the campus claimed. No,
Sehun was not ready to hand his heart over to a guy like Kris. It would
positively and without a shadow of a doubt be crushed. Most sixteen-year-olds
would reel for him, sure. But Sehun was not most sixteen-year-olds.
“So tell me why you don’t consume alcohol again.” Kris demanded in the most
cordial manner when they reached the top of the tower. A harsh cold-seeped
wooden door separated them from the biting night outside and Kris’ hand
knowingly clutched the carved steel handle.
Sehun offered a simple shrug. “It’s unhealthy.”
“That can’t be the reason.” Kris’ frown spelled out his disappointment, loud
and clearly. After all, he had been nothing but honest to Sehun all this while
and he even let on one of his both proudest and most embarrassing secrets.
“That is the reason.” He answered tiredly, wrapping his arms around his own
body to shield himself. Kris let out a heavy breath before drawing the door
open. A gush of mobile wind tossed Sehun a step back.
“Holy cow, it’s cold.”
“I asked you to put on some extra layers.” Kris snorted and led him outside.
“You’re clearly talking to the wrong person.” With a scoff, Sehun held a hand
out and within seconds, the top of the tower lifted its coldness. He did not
bother to warm the place up, but it was no longer as cold.
It was obvious to see that the watch tower had not been one of the academy’s
prime concerns. If it weren’t so high up, it might have been congested with
vermin and rodents. Leaves and other nature outputs carried by the might of the
wind were scattered on the floor of the tower. The sight below was truly
deplorable, but as soon as Sehun lifted his head, his breath left him. The
blanket of rich black sky ceilinged them and the rest of the academy with an
incredible amount of scintillating stars dusting it like freckles. The stars
peppered the sky with its glimmer and delightful flicker. The best part was
that they seemed so close that Sehun could touch them if he stretched his hand
upward.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” He breathed out, taking Kris’ side. A soft
laughter escaped Kris’ mouth and he raised a hand to Sehun’s shoulder before
squeezing it lightly. Sehun did not cringe, but it took a great deal of effort.
Kris dropped his hand and made his way to the edge of the tower.
“So.” He turned to face Sehun with his elbows propped back on the edge. “Do you
want to talk about what made your day so sour?”
“What do you think?” Sehun scoffed, taking his own place against the edge. He
leaned over—with caution—and gaped at the tiny trees that adorned one of the
many joint lawns of the academy. Torches that lit the corridors seemed like
flickering fireflies from up here.
“Shark?”
“Not just him actually.” He straightened up to meet Kris’ excited gaze. “I…
told Chanyeol off… for reading people’s minds.” He sighed, almost upset with
himself. “I shouldn’t have done that. I’m not exactly the boss of anyone here.”
“No, you’re not.” Kris replied. “But you’re his friend. While you’re at
reprimanding him, tell him to quit hangin’ with those violent scums, will you?”
Sehun blinked at the new information. “Violent scums? Meaning who?”
Kris’ brow arched. “You… didn’t know?”
“Know what?”
“Well, he’s your friend, so I assumed you knew.”
“We’ve known each other for some two weeks or so, Kris. I’m not sure I know
anyone well enough here.”
“Oh.” He took a more uncomfortable position to face Sehun properly. “He’s been
spending a fair amount of time with the… assholes. I don’t know how else to
call them. They’re also elites, first rankers. But you know, they’re… assholes.
Word has that they deal with even the mobsters and are directly involved with
the handlers of the Sunless Market.”
“Sunless Market?”
“Yeah, I’ve never been there. But it’s kind of a black market where Flairs are
sold.”
“What?” the idea itself sounded ridiculous to Sehun. “How can Flairs be sold?”
“Exactly. Some of the kids go to FLAC here. People are aware of their parents’
jobs, which is to deal with the Sunless Market, but nothing can actually be
done, you know. The school needs their influence.”
“What do you mean the school needs their influence?”
“How do you think the academy is funded and protected from the outside world?”
“So you’re saying that the academy’s administers are in direct link with the
mobsters?!”
“God, no! Those douchebags Chanyeol is roaming with at nights have parents who
deal with the mobsters. I didn’t say they were friends. They often keep the
mobsters off school grounds by paying them off with the Flairs they’re looking
for.”
Sehun drew in a long breath, trying to take in what Kris was saying. “I’m
guessing not everyone knows about this.”
“No. Most of them figure it out by putting the puzzle pieces together by their
third year, as I have.” He smirked. How could Sehun be so dumb to believe
Chanyeol’s half-baked excuses of his sudden disappearances? “They maintain low
key about the matter, but there has been…” Kris began to continue but trailed
off as his eyes darted down. He froze for a moment and Sehun scanned his face
for any hint of revelation but found none. Kris was just stock-still, gaping at
the ground over the edge of the tower.
“Kris?” Sehun followed his gaze and bent over the stony edge before his gaze
fell on the group of men that travelled one of the corridors, dressed in all
black. His breath hitched. He could not conceive their features from this
distance, but he had a relatively confident hunch that he had seen those men on
the night Kai slapped the warden. There were four men, all striding the
corridor without an ounce of trepidation. One of them looked up. He was not
moving and neither was Kris. “Kris.” The name came out as a raspy whisper. All
three of the strange men glanced up at Sehun. Without a moment to spare, they
bolted across the corridor in the direction of the tower. Sehun’s heart lurched
and he was about to grab Kris’ arm before Kris grabbed his and hauled him
towards the door. “What’s going on?!” Sehun really did not have to ask, he
already knew what was going on. But Kris said that the mobsters were not
allowed to roam the school grounds. People were obviously aware of the
mobsters’ activity within the academy but none had been able to stop them?
Kris still held forearm as they hurtled down the stairs to make it out of the
tower building before the four men could reach it, but Kris came to a sudden
halt and Sehun almost knocked him down a step or two when they heard the
tower’s door clicking open from below.
“Hold your breath and don’t breathe until I tell you.” Kris blurted out and
released Sehun’s arm. “Stay here.”
“Where are you going?!”
He didn’t receive an answer as Kris leapt down a whole flight of stairs. He did
not cover his nose, but his chest was unmoving. He knelt to the lowest level
and held his hand out. Sehun could hear the tread of the men’s footsteps up the
stairs. One of them coughed but none came into sight yet and Sehun was already
choking, suffocating. Kris was still steady on one of his knees, hand still
cupping air as he poisoned the oxygen that laid heavy on ground level. Sehun
could not hold his breath any longer. He almost breathed in when a brutal
clutch claimed his arm. Unable to perceive the situation at first, Sehun
swooned as he was yanked up the stairs. He gasped in a sharp breath when he was
a flight of stairs above and glanced back at Kris who rose to his feet to melt
the blade the mobster charged him with despite the poisonous air. It took him a
moment to realize who it was that was hauling him. Before him, Kai dragged him
up the stairs with his hand clawing into Sehun’s arm until they reached the top
door once again. Sehun’s heart was at his throat when Kai mercilessly shoved
him out the door and he quickly drew in the fresh cold air to fill his deprived
lungs. Where had he come from?! Sehun could not ask as he sobbed for air. “You
have to help him!” he yapped at Kai who was bolting the door lock.
“He’s not on top of my priority list at the moment.” He shoved past Sehun and
leaned over the tower’s edge before cursing under his breath. Taken aback,
Sehun spotted the group of mobsters that was zooming through the corridors.
“What’s happening?!”
“Shit.” Kai hissed and desperately looked around the top of the tower as if
searching for a solution. The sudden and loud bang on the door plunged Sehun
forward and his mind turned into a blank slate when the door shuddered to every
bang. “Come on.” There was a grave desperation in Kai’s voice and a ferocious
anxiety in his grip when he caught Sehun’s wrist before pulling him to walk.
“Can’t you call for help?!” Sehun screeched as the door’s bolting kept melting
down.
“They’re here for you. The school and your fellow classmates will gladly trade
you for peace with the Snatchers. Is that apt for you?!” Kai spat.
“What?” the word numbed Sehun’s tongue. Everything was moving too fast and
although the mobsters were slamming the door down, there was no noise.
Something or someone was blocking the noise. “What are you doing?!” he gasped
when Kai climbed onto the edge of the tower.
“We’re gonna jump.” He answered blatantly, holding a hand out.
Sehun cocked his brows. “You’re out of your mind?!”
“Listen, most of them have more than one Flair injected into them! I won’t win
fighting against them single-handedly and you’re as capable as an earthworm.
Jump or get taken away. Your pick.” He was not exactly giving Sehun an option.
Sehun glanced back at the door that was on the verge of dropping. He did not
see how jumping of the highest tower in the academy would save him, but he took
Kai’s hand. Just when he had gotten onto the edge, the door was felled and a
man, one of the four from earlier burst out and almost caught Sehun’s calf if
it weren’t for Kai who planted a boot into the powerfully built man’s face. He
bounded off the edge and locked his legs around the gigantic man before pulling
him down. They plummeted into the flagstone with Kai’s legs still locked around
the mobster’s neck. The bigger man twisted himself free and they both shot up
to their feet. “Well, aren’t you mad ugly.” Kai sneered and lurched forward. He
took a blow of the mobster’s monstrous fist in his face, but did not stagger a
step back before his boot crashed the side of the mobster’s skull. He bounded
off the ground and stomped right on the man’s chest. He did not even pause for
a second as he headed the man right in his face, repeatedly until Kai’s own
nose was cascading blood. But the other man stood like a great statue without a
single drop of blood betraying him. His chapped lips stretched into a smirk.
“My turn?” he afforded and without thinking twice, Sehun pulled his hand up and
struck the edge of the tower, dragging down a lightning that struck the
flagstone between Kai and the mobster.
“You have shit aim!” Kai snapped at Sehun with blood-clogged nose, jumping back
as the flagstone cracked, almost knocking Kai off his feet. He saw the
opportunity when the mobster was still steadying himself as the thunder
followed. Sehun had not learnt on how to summon lightning without causing a
storm. Just when the rain began to fall, Kai jolted forward and punted the huge
man’s chin from under, breaking his crown before the man
All happened within a mere minute and Sehun, beginning to drench in the rain he
had called upon, was unable to swallow anything that was taking place before
his eyes. “He’s there!” another cried from the stairs. Sehun was sure that Kris
was holding most of them off, but the invulnerable ones such as the man Kai had
just felled were probably immune to the poisonous air.
“Can’t you do anything right?!” Kai leapt across the cracked open flagstone as
the rainwater washed the blood down his face.
“I just saved your life!” Sehun protested angrily and Kai opened his mouth to
retort, but stopped to sharply look back at the exit before breaking into an
animal sprint. Sehun, still jaded as ever, felt the air being knocked out of
his lungs as Kai bounded onto the edge and pounced him. The impact of Kai’s
body against his own probably crushed a rib or two as they were hurled off the
tower’s edge. He could not scream. He was too paralyzed to scream. With Kai’s
arms crushing around his body, they fell off the tower and Kai’s arms secured
him in place. This was it. Sehun was going to die. He was going to die in the
arms of the man he hated the most in his life. “You bastard! I hate you!” he
finally cried out until his lungs burned and clenched his eyes just as tight as
he wrapped his arms around Kai’s body. He felt the air and the rain jutting
through his skin like bullets as they plummeted down. He was going to die. He
was going to hit the ground and have his skull cracked open, brain splattered.
And then he forced to shift. Kai’s arms and hands held Sehun so close to his
own body as they went down like a meteor before he twisted and Sehun was now
merely resting on top of Kai. He still did not dare let go of Kai or open his
eyes. Something prickled his arms that were mangled by Kai’s weight. The rain
still poured, but along with its wetness, Kai’s heat made it impossible for
Sehun to regain his senses. His blood raced in his veins and pounded in his
ears, responding to the adrenaline rush that he had just went through. Then in
the cacophony of the downpour, he heard Kai’s groan and felt the rumble of
Kai’s chest against his face.
“Get… off me… please.” Kai grunted painfully and Sehun’s eyes flew open. He
perked his head up from Kai’s chest and the amount of bushes that surrounded
them in the dark blinded him for a moment. When he did not move out of
uncertainty of his survival after such a long fall, Kai pushed him off of him
and Sehun dropped to the wet grassed ground with a thud. The long straight
hedge was deformed when they had landed, but they were safe behind the
protection of the long line of bushes. No, they were not. Sehun could still
hear the mobsters up on the tower. Lights were on now and the bell began to
toll. But he could not see anything over the wall. He realized that they were
on the other side of the fortification of the academy castle. Forests were now
closer to them than the academy on the other side of the wall. Kai yanked Sehun
up to his feet by his arm and Sehun steadied himself by grabbing onto Kai’s
arm. “Come on.” He rasped and broke into a jog towards the woods.
“Where? I can’t…” Sehun dropped to his knees and Kai halted.
“I told you, the school will turn you in if you—”
“I can’t… walk.” He gasped for air as his entire body shook. Groaning, Kai came
back and threw Sehun over his shoulder before proceeding into the woods.
“You’re such a pain in the ass.”
Sehun was not going to complain. He neither had the energy nor the option to
disagree with Kai as he limply hung over Kai’s shoulder with Kai’s arm twisted
around the back of his thighs. The darkness of the woods engulfed them.
“Where?” all that he could bring out was that one word as his head pulled him
into oblivion.
“For now, somewhere you won’t be hunted.”
***** Let's Call It A Night *****
Darkness seeped into every brick in the walls of the town. Only the vague
outlines of the straggles of short and small buildings that looked like tiny
shop lots with a narrow unhealthy jagged road running between them gave away
the fact that it was indeed a small town, hiding under the cloak of the night
that had forsaken the stars that bragged their radiance only an hour or so ago,
thanks to the storm Sehun had caused. Not a single lamppost was lit although
they stood tall on every corner, all as lifeless as the night and Sehun was far
too exhausted to clear the grey skies. Plus, he had meddled with nature enough
for one night, he was not going to test its patience. Many parts of his body
were sore and his arms ached along with his neck which felt like had it
suffered a whiplash. Well, it was not every day he jumped off a tower in the
arms of another man whom he apparently hated to hell’s pit and back before they
dived into a closely trimmed hedge. Some inches to the side and they would have
been splattered on the ground. Despite the fact that Sehun had landed right on
top of him, Kai looked completely fine, striding like the hard-headed stallion
he was. Perks of mastering superhuman agility, Sehun supposed.
Still soaked from the rain that had stopped only a moment ago, Sehun sat
crouched with his arms hugging his knees in order to stop himself from
shivering several feet away from the telephone booth Kai was in, hanging on the
phone with a grave expression etched on his face. Every inch of clothes was
soused, sticking to his body like a second skin. Crystal pearls dripped off his
hair while cold rainwater beaded his skin. His clattering teeth made the only
sound that can be heard within the radius of at least a mile. He looked over to
Kai in the telephone booth who was just as drenched as he was and even after
bearing Sehun all the way through and out of the woods he still seemed steadier
than a mountain. Sehun was not sure how Kai was able to carry himself let alone
both of them all the way to this town on the other side of the academy. His
Flair may be one incentive, but motivation certainly must have had its part to
play. Sehun needed to find out what motivation it was that drove Kai this hard.
The man looked like he was the end result of ruthless horror and unforgivable
incidents. He led a life of melancholia, hiding it all under the harsh skin he
forged for himself to protect him against the world.
Sehun sighed at his own delirious judgment of the man. Not every single asshole
had a tough past. Maybe Kai was just a jerk because he had the power and other
means to be a jerk. Well, either way, he was doing a marvellous job at being a
jerk, especially at being Sehun’s jerk. He tore his gaze from Kai, who still
seemed to be having a serious and secretive conversation over the phone with
God-knew-who, and fixed it on the narrow road that led to an end of darkness.
The cold dissipated, little by little, and Sehun found himself being able to
focus clearer. Where was he exactly? The town—he was almost certain that it was
a town—looked just as abandoned as the rest of the night. He burrowed his chin
between his knees and stared at the shop lot like buildings. Actually, the
better question would be why he was here.
Everything happened too quickly—five minutes at its maximum. And here he was,
crouching by the roadside he was unfamiliar with. His mind drifted back to the
academy on the other end of the forest that loomed behind him. He hoped Kris
was all right. Sehun glanced back and shuddered at the sight of the even darker
forest. He needed answers. But first, he needed to ask his questions. Right
now, he was not sure if he were in shape to either ask the questions or digest
the answers. He just wanted a bed to rest in and some heat, preferably not
Kai’s.
Sehun’s jerk stepped out of the telephone booth and his sigh reverberated
through the bitter night air. He shot Sehun a glance and looked away, his
expression—even more tired. He appeared to have aged a year in just one night.
Good to know the man is not made of metal, Sehun thought. But still, for
someone who survived that long of a fall, he should have at least broken a
bone. Maybe he had, maybe he was just really good at hiding his pain. Dried
blood still caked Kai’s upper lip despite bathing in the rain a while ago.
Sehun doubted that a broken nose would bother Kai much after that fall. He
wanted to ask Kai if he were okay, but given that Kai was unlikely to respond
with honesty, he decided against it. Instead, he pinned his jerk with a glare
as if he were to be blamed for all of this and he owed Sehun an explanation—a
darn good one.
“Get up.” Kai ordered, finally moving away from the telephone booth. It took
Sehun a moment to stretch his numb legs and he rolled his shoulders back,
wincing at the soreness they produced.
“Who were you talking to?” he asked as Kai started towards the road that cut
through the two straggles of buildings.
“The school.” Kai, surprisingly, answered.
“What did they say?”
“We’ll go back in the morning when things have settled down.” He did not
exactly answer the question, but he answered the next question Sehun was about
to ask.
“Why were the mobsters after me?”
Kai did not respond as predicted. He walked ahead of Sehun, strutting tiredly
in his damp black jeans and loosely buttoned grey shirt. His thin shirt was
doing a lousy job at protecting any part of his upper body as its wetness stuck
to his caramel skin. Sehun tried to keep his eyes off Kai’s strong wet back and
diverted his attention to the buildings they were passing. They seemed
undisturbed, but not old. There weren’t any signboards or of the sorts. Just a
narrow road and empty locked buildings.
“I’m hungry.” Sehun muttered to get Kai to say something. When he didn’t, Sehun
clenched his fists before racing after Kai. He grabbed his arm to stop him in
his tracks and forced Kai to face him.
“Are you seriously thathungry?!” Kai snapped, frustrated and Sehun released his
arm.
“What, no! Are you not going to tell me what the hell just happened back
there?!”
“Are you always this stubborn?” Kai’s brows furrowed into a scowl, but he
seemed far too exhausted to wear himself out with even so little as a scowl.
“Uh, do bears shit in the woods?” Sehun scoffed.
Kai heaved a deep breath and began to walk again. “I believe they shit wherever
they are.” He replied, sounding as if he was about to give up on entertaining
Sehun.
“Do you enjoy being a jackass all day long or is it a part time job?” he
groaned, stomping after Kai.
“I believe my part time job is looking after your ass.”
Sehun cringed at that. “And which begs the question why?”
When Kai did not answer, Sehun gave in. He was far too fatigued to press the
issue any further. For now, he can only make assumptions as to why the mobsters
were after him, but none of them made much sense. Why him? Why would the
mobsters risk revealing themselves on campus grounds just to get one Flairer?
It was obvious to understand that the mobsters had been roaming the academy
without the authorities’ knowledge since Kris said that they were paid by some
of the students’ parents to stay away from the FLAC grounds. But they made a
huge fuss just to get to Sehun? And then there was Kai. How did he even show up
at the right moment? Was he keeping a trail on Sehun? Why? Yeah, the
assumptions only led him to more questions and it overtired his brain. Sehun
decided to let it go for the night.
His legs could barely carry him and he considered asking Kai for a rest, but he
knew Kai would rather carry him on his shoulder than permit him another break.
“Where are we going?” Sehun asked when his second round of patience wore out.
“To find a lodging to spend the night.”
Sehun blinked. “A lodging? Where, here?” he looked at the buildings as the idea
sounded absurd. Kai did not entertain the retort. “What is this place? Is this
a town? Where are the people?”
“Jesus Christ.” Kai exhaled, but kept walking forward.
“You could just tell me what’s going on and I’ll stop with my questions.”
“Fine. First of all, they’re not mobsters. They’re called Snatchers.”
“Snatchers? Because they… snatch Flairs?”
“In some manner of speaking, yes. They take what’s not theirs to take.”
Sehun caught up to Kai’s side and fixated his eyes on him. Kai on the other
hand was doing his best to avoid Sehun’s gaze. “And… they want me?”
“Don’t flatter yourself. They want all the rare Flairs.”
“I have a rare Flair?” Sehun had no idea why, but he wanted to laugh at that.
“Don’t you think Kris would make a fine alternative?”
“There are plenty of atom manipulators and the Snatchers probably have their
access to the Flair.”
“Okay.” He snorted. “But I’m pretty sure my Flair can’t change rusty metal to
gold or oxygen to poison.”
Kai looked at him as if he was rambling. “You don’t know the extent and the
limit of your Flair. You think all that you can do is sweep in some fog and
dissolve the cold, when your Flair is obviously capable of a category-
5 hurricane. Atmokinesis can lead to natural disasters. You’re aware of that,
aren’t you?”
Now that Kai put it that way, Sehun saw where this was leading to. “I don’t
think I have that… much power.”
“Of course you don’t think that. But that again, you don’t think at all.” He
stopped at the junction and Sehun looked ahead. The dark end was not an end
after all. The town suddenly seemed like a maze of buildings. “This way.” he
took the road to his left. “Zaida runs some not-so-legal lodging at the corner.
She owes me a favour.” He answered the question Sehun asked earlier.
“Why do they… need my Flair?”
“What do humans fear the most? Apart from Justin Bieber taking over the world.”
Sehun scowled. “I happen to like Justin Bieber.”
Kai scoffed, a little too loud. “I am most definitely not surprised.”
His scowl deepened. “I don’t know. Judgement Day?”
This time, a small smirk tugged at the corners of Kai’s lips. “Now we’re
getting somewhere. Imagine the amount countries’ leaders would be willing to
pay in order to prevent major natural catastrophes? And you, dear princess, are
the only Atmokinetic Flairer in this world.”
Sehun swallowed. “That’s why the school accepted me regardless of my age.” He
mumbled to himself.
“I think it’s more complicated than that.” Just for a very short instant, Kai’s
smirk faltered and he flashed Sehun a look of comfort. His eyes then darted to
the building behind Sehun as he came to a halt. The building looked just as
abandoned as the rest but Kai walked past Sehun and stopped before the door
nevertheless. He knocked on it. There wasn’t a response. He didn’t bother to
give it another knock. Instead, he gripped the doorknob and twisted it until it
clicked before it broke. Shoving the door open he stepped in and Sehun
understood that he was not supposed to wait for Kai to invite him in. Drawing
in a long breath, Sehun followed suit.
“Hijo de puta! Who the fu—”
Sehun almost jumped when he heard the women squawking out of the blue before a
dim yellow light brightened the hallway he and Kai were standing in. A woman,
dressed in nothing but a white night shirt came into sight with her long black
hair draped over her breasts. The night shirt covered down to her brown thighs
and she froze in place when her eyes fell on the smiling Kai. “Hey, Alma.”
“Kai! What a pleasant surprise.” She beamed a toothy smile and pulled Kai into
a rough embrace. Sehun tried to not to look too flustered as her night shirt
rose up to her hips as Kai snaked his arms around her lithe body. “What
happened to your face?”
“Had an adventurous night.” He answered blatantly.
“Ah. Haven’t seen you in ages. Since the fun times, eh?” she pulled back and
prodded a finger into Kai’s chest. She peered over Kai’s shoulder and glowered
at the broken doorknob. “You’re gonna need to pay for that.” Her heavily
accented English was somehow amusing to listen to.
Kai let out a soft chuckle which sounded dead to Sehun’s ears. “Yes, I will. I
just let myself in, wondering if you were busy.”
“I am.” She smirked. “But not anywhere near as busy I am to be of service for
you.”
“Not tonight.” Kai sighed and glanced back at Sehun.
“Umm.” Alma scanned Sehun from top to toe with a smug smile playing on her thin
lips. “Who’s this tarty chico?”
“A student.”
“Oh, Kai.” She snorted. “I’m sure you can do better.”
Sehun felt offended for an instant before he realized what she was referring
to.
Kai let out an exasperated breath. “This is Alma Zaida.” He introduced rather
reluctantly and Sehun simply bowed his head. “I just need a bed for him and a
beer for me. Think you can do me this favour? I don’t have cash with me at the
moment but I’ll pay you as soon as I can.”
“Aw, por supuesto!” she chimed and pecked on Kai’s cheek. “Or we can always get
creative when it comes to payment.”
“No, thank you, Alma. I’m married, remember?”
“Never stopped you from venturing into the sexiest part of being married.
Cheating.” She whispered and bit her lip almost too sensually that Sehun
thought he might be sick. “Besides, I see no ring.”
“A room would do. We’ll leave before the sun comes up.” Kai said decidedly.
“All right.” She sighed as if resigned. Her eyes darted over to Sehun again.
“Should I send some food up for the scrawny brat?”
“Yes, I’ll be grateful.”
“Wait here.” She scurried away at once.
“Exactly what sort of favour does she owe you?” Sehun asked and Kai passed him
an arched brow.
“Not the kind you think.”
“Really? What am I supposed think when a scantily dressed woman has her hands
all over a married man?”
“She’s a good friend.”
Sehun shrugged and was quite surprised Kai was even bothering to explain.
Alma returned with a key in her hand. “Be quiet, you two.” She mocked, pressing
the key in Kai’s palm. “Third room to the left upstairs.”
“Thanks, Alma.”
As they proceeded up the stairs, Sehun’s heart hammered in his chest. “Is she
thinking that we’re going to—”
“Fuck? Most certainly.” Kai sniggered.
“And you’re okay with that?!” he hissed under his breath.
“That’s the last thing you should be worried about now, Scrappy.”
They came up to the room and Sehun was blinking too fast to adjust his vision
to the darkness. He waited while Kai unlocked the door. He held it open for
Sehun to get in before closing the door behind him. Sehun stared at the single
bed and sighed.
“I’ll take the floor.” Kai said immediately as he hurried to the room within
the room. Sehun understood that it was the bathroom when Kai returned with a
towel. Sehun considered taking his wet clothes off, but he really did not want
Alma to find him naked in a room with his teacher. He flumped on the bed with
his clothes on and watched Kai strip his shirt off before he entered the
bathroom. He didn’t close the door as he stood in front of the mirror with his
back facing Sehun.
Sehun tried to not ogle the perfect cleft of Kai’s back that led straight to
his tailbone and the waistband of his Emporio Armani boxers that peeked above
his jeans’ waistband, but he could not tear his eyes off Kai’s shoulder blades.
Kai turned the faucet on before wetting the towel and brought it to his nose to
clean the blood.
He cleared his throat and dropped his gaze when Kai peered at his reflection in
the mirror. “Why hasn’t the school taken any measures if the mob… Snatchers are
after me?”
“It has. But someone is very persistent on breaking the curfew rules.”
Sehun felt his blood fill his cheeks. “Are you… assigned to look out for me…
or?”
“Something like that. But there isn’t much that the school could do when the
Snatchers are really good at being stealthy. The only reason you’re still here
is because of Dillan.”
“The headmistress?”
“Unless you have a boyfriend named Dillan, yes.”
Sehun bit his tongue hard enough that he tasted the blood. “I don’t have a
boyfriend.”
Kai didn’t reply to that. He hissed a little when he clutched his nose. Sehun
carefully studied the boyish frame Kai carried and the lithe sides of his
waist. “The academy would give you up if it meant peace for them and the
students.”
“Why has Headmistress Dillan taken interest in protecting me?”
Kai looked at him through the mirror again. “I don’t know.”
You’re lying. But Sehun did not argue. He pulled his shoes off and raised them
to the bed. “Are you… okay?”
Kai froze and Sehun noticed him gripping the edge of the sink.
“That was a… terrible fall.” Sehun looked for the right words but his brain
failed him. He was too exhausted to even abide by coherence.
“I’m fine.” He turned the faucet off and stepped out of the bathroom. “You’ll
get sick if you sleep in those clothes.”
“I’m fine.” Sehun echoed Kai’s words and lied down. “Thank you. For saving me
from the Snatchers.”
A moment of silence passed before he heard Kai mutter, “You’re welcome. Let's
call it a night. Sleep.”
***** Cornered and Battered. *****
His back burned with the unsparing abrasion of the air. His arms were tight
around a harsh bred body, hands clinging onto a soft fabric. His heart was at
his throat, breath knocked out of his lungs and for a fleeting moment, it felt
as though he was floating mid-air before his arms fell free. He opened his eyes
to see the tower top above him, furthering itself away as he plummeting deeper.
His arms were empty and the man he was holding onto vanished as if into thin
air. A scream betrayed his heavy chest before he felt his back dive into the
ground.
He jolted up with his heart still at his throat, hammering the walls of his
windpipe, blocking air as sweat beaded his entire body. He rapidly blinked his
eyes trying to adjust his vision to the darkness of the room he was in. It took
him a moment to realize that he was not in his dorm. Instead, this room was
gloating its polished walls and empty photo frames. Right across him, a
silhouette bloomed in the dark and Sehun calmed his heaving chest before fixing
his eyes on Kai who was seated on the tattered chair with his arms crossed over
his chest and eyes drilling into Sehun’s. He looked unconcerned, stoic as ever.
But he did look sleepless and tired. A delectable smell stung Sehun’s nose,
hungering him, growling his stomach almost immediately. He looked around and
found a plating of two thick sausages and a fingerbowl of some sort of cream
like dip on the bedside table.
Wiping the sweat off his forehead with the sleeve of his shirt, Sehun pushed
the duvet aside and folded his legs. “Uhm…” he started and found his own voice
too hoarse and deep. He kept his eyes averted to the window, not wanting to
meet Kai’s annoyed gaze. “Haven’t you slept?”
Letting out an exasperated breath, Kai leaned back in his chair. “How could I
when you keep moaning and screaming like you’re being chased by a Bugbear?”
So that was the closest to concern Sehun could draw out of his jerk. Sighing,
he slumped back against the headboard. “I had a nightmare.” he muttered,
lowering his gaze to his palms on his lap.
“Yeah, well, Alma and the rest downstairs are not going to think that you were
screaming from nightmares.” He let out an annoyed groan as Sehun’s flush
coloured his cheeks. Kai did not seem like he was troubled by that idea more
than he was vexed by not being able to sleep.
“When people have nightmares, others try to calm them. Why are you trying to
make me feel worse?”
“Why should I try to calm you?”
Sehun scowled. His jerk had a point. Why should he care whether Sehun had
nightmares or not? “I take it that you don’t have and never have had experience
with children?” He sighed, tilting his head back.
Kai kept mum as if it were one of those questions that he was not obligated to
answer even for the sake of being polite. Sehun wondered if Kai cared for his
wife. He also wondered what it would take for Kai to care for someone.
“When they get me, would they bring me to the Sunless Market?” Sehun questioned
at an attempt to get Kai to talk.
“Who told you about the Sunless Market?” he stopped himself as if his question
had been answered. “Try and stay away from that boy, will you?”
“Who, Kris? Why?”
“If it weren’t for him, you wouldn’t be here and I would be in my bed, sleeping
the night off instead of babysitting you.” He scoffed, running his fingers
through his tousled hair. He was back in his worn grey shirt although the top
buttons were undone.
The scowl returned to Sehun’s eyebrows. “I didn’t ask you to babysit me.”
“No. But Dillan did.”
“And you obey her orders because she’s your mother-in-law?”
“Because I owe her greatly.” He answered blatantly and pinned Sehun with an
exhausted look. Sehun almost took pity on him but the decided against it.
“How did you get to the tower in time? Have you been following me?”
Kai leaned forward and rubbed his tired eyes, sighing heavily. “I climbed up
the tower when I saw the Snatchers.”
“So you were following me.”
“Jesus Christ. If you’re not going back to sleep, get off the bed.”
“No.” Sehun protested and yanked the duvet closer. “I am going back to sleep.”
Kai grimaced at him and murmured something to himself. Sehun only vaguely heard
the words spoiled, pamperedand kid.He slouched forward for a minute before
leaning back and buried his face into a hand with his elbow rested on the
armrest.
Sehun bit his lip as he focused on Kai’s softly moving chest. He then closed
his eyes, trying to drift back to sleep. But his head began to swim in more
questions. Would it not be easier for the school to just get rid of him
altogether since his Flair posed such a threat to mankind? How long can Dillan
or Kai keep him safe? Did his parents know about any of this? He cracked his
eyes open and looked to his jerk who seemed too quiet to be sleeping. He was
not even snoring. “Do my parents know?”
Kai looked up from his hand. “No.”
“Why did the school think they will be able to keep me safe when those
Snatchers are capable of infiltrating the school grounds?”
“Because you’re much safer in the academy. They would have located you faster
if you’re out there. Here, in a place full of Flairers, their chances are low.
And they are not allowed to harm a student of FLAC because of the treaties. But
since they’ve gone against them, I suppose they’re desperate and motivated.
They will come again.”
“Then what? They won’t stop, will they?”
“No. But right now, the safest place for you is to stay close to Dillan and
me.”
“Why are you both protecting me when the rest don’t really care about the
threat my Flair comes with? It can’t just be you and Headmistress Dillan who
care about the survival of mankind.”
Kai looked amused for a second. “Your questions never seem to cease.”
“Imagine being in my shoes.”
“Fair enough.” He sighed. “But I’m not here to answer your questions.”
“But you’re the only one who can at the moment.”
“Precisely. Therefore, I have an upper hand.”
“Why—”
“Look. If it were my secrets to spill, I’d tell you. I wouldn’t keep you in the
dark. But believe me, they aren’t my secrets to tell and I don’t want to see
Dillan’s bad side. So.” He shot up from his chair and wended his way to the
window. He pulled it open and perked his head out before drawing in a long
breath.
“So I’m not going to get any answers until Dillan decides to tell me.”
“All that you should know is that she’ll do whatever it takes to keep you
protected within the academy and that includes you not failing this term and
getting kicked out of the school.”
That’s why she asked Kai to hand me the criteria. Sehun shot Kai a glower, but
did not comment on it.
“You need to stop using your Flair at will.” Kai snapped after a moment but
didn’t face away from the window. “That’s how they track. The stunt you pulled
on the first day surely must have attracted their locators.”
“Yeah, sorry it didn’t come with my manual.” Sehun spat and pulled the duvet up
to his chest. Kai noticed him shuddering to the cold and shut the window. “I
need to tell my parents.”
“No, you will not.”
“They need to know.”
“They will pull you out of the school the minute they know that you’re in more
trouble than they already think you do.”
“What do you mean?”
“The little episodes you have. They’re not accidental, you do realize that,
don’t you? You make them happen. When you’re mad, or when you’re excited. It’s
not a condition you have. But it’s part of your Flair. Your human parents won’t
do you any good.”
“Won’t do me any good? I’m not sure if you’ve been informed, I grew up in a
suburbia. I had Mr and Mrs Coberton and Mr and Mrs Jin for my neighbours. I had
a bike which I was rarely allowed to ride. I play video games with my dad and
make potato salads with my mom every Tuesday. If there’s something that will
not do me any good, it’s this school and this bloody escapade you brought me
on!”
Kai finally turned to face him with a lockjaw. “Really? Then why come here in
the first place if you loved your perfectly normal life back home making potato
salads with your mom?”
Sehun opened his mouth to retaliate but then realized Kai had won the argument
with the first five words. He was an Alien back home. Here, he was a freakier
than a Freak. Now, he was some catastrophic Flairer. “You wouldn’t understand.”
He muttered finally and sank into the bed. “My parents are the only ones who
love me unconditionally.”
“Flairers don’t have mundane parents.”
Sehun blinked at him. “What?”
Kai exhaled a great sigh and scrubbed his face with his bare palms. “Forget
about it. Go to sleep. I don’t want to drag your sleepy ass tomorrow morning.”
Sehun knew he should let this go for now. “The bed is big enough.”
Kai ignored his invitation and collapsed back into his chair but a smirk tugged
at a corner of his lips. “You’re not my apt bed partner.”
“Haha. I believe Alma is, then? I wonder what your wife would do if she saw her
husband being outwardly groped by a crazy hot lady.”
“She’d want to join us. Now shut up before I shove the damn sausage down your
throat.”
Sehun imagined a completely different image. He saw no shame in Kai’s
expression but his own was filled with blushes and heat. He watched his jerk
drift into sleep as a soft snore began to thrum in the room. The sound of his
snore was surprisingly soothing and calming, almost lulling Sehun to sleep. But
he could not even catch a wink as his head swam in doubts. He helped himself to
one of the sausages and cringed a little as he took a bite. Dipping it into the
cream like sauce did not help the lewd thoughts that arose in Sehun’s mind
either. He glanced to his sleeping jerk and cringed further. How much lower can
you stoop, Sehun? Ogling a man in his sleep like some wild, unmannered dog? He
replaced the half bitten sausage back onto its plate and settled to sit
comfortably against the headboard. He wondered if he should ask Kai to take the
bed since he was not going to sleep, but then let the thought slip since Kai
already seemed too deep in his slumber
When Kai stirred after an hour or so, he fluttered his eyes open and met
Sehun’s gaze. “How fucking long have you been staring at me like an owl?” he
grunted and shifted in his seat as Sehun instantly blinked his dry eyes and
looked away.
Clearing his throat, Sehun slid off the bed. “It’s almost dawn.”
Kai yawned and stretched his long arms over his head before getting off the
chair. He peered out the window before turning to Sehun. “Can you walk or do I
have to carry your ass back as well?”
“I can walk.” Sehun spat, offended.
Kai did not bother to button his shirt or neaten his hair as he wove his way
out of the room and Sehun grabbed his jacket before quickly following after
him. When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he almost bumped into Kai’s back
as his eyes fell on Alma who was flumped in the chair near the door with a lit
cigarette dangling between her fingers. “Leaving so soon?” she chimed, smirking
before she rose to her feet. She was wrapped in a silk violet robe but her
tanned legs were still very much exposed. “Someone had fun, didn’t he?” this
time, her smirk was directed towards Sehun.
Sehun felt his blood pound in his ears as the back of his neck grew hotter by
the second. “It’s not what you think.” He murmured when Kai did not deny her
wild assumptions.
“Uh huh.” She licked her smirking lips and buttoned Kai’s shirt up. “Wouldn’t
want your little Fey finding out about your adventures with baby boy here.” She
ran her slim fingers through Kai’s hair to sweep it neat.
Kai scoffed and brushed his lips on her cheek. “Thank you, Alma.” With that, he
walked out the door and Sehun nervously smiled at the woman before following
suit.
“Why didn’t you say anything?!” he hissed under his breath when they were out
on the street again.
“Because it’s unnecessary. And I’d rather she think that than suspecting
anything else as to why I might have brought a student over to spend the
night.”
“Oh.”
They walked in silence for a moment before Sehun decided to break it again. “So
you’re just helping me because Dillan ordered you to do so.”
“Shit.” Kai gasped out of the sudden and the next thing Sehun knew was Kai
shoving him back against a wall and pinning his entire weight against his own
body. With his breath hitching, Sehun spied the two men across the street who
were, just as the rest of the Snatchers, dressed in black clothing.
“Do you think Alma ratted on us?” Sehun whispered against Kai’s cheek as Kai
kept his scowl on the men.
“She wouldn’t. These Snatchers might just be passing by.”
“What are we gonna do?”
Kai faced him and the tip of their noses almost brushed. He froze for a moment
as their breath grazed each other mouth while their hearts pounded against one
another’s chest. Kai’s eyes fell to Sehun’s lips as did Sehun’s to Kai’s lips.
Then, “Take your jacket off.”
“What?” he asked but peeled the jacket off at once. Kai quickly unbuttoned his
shirt and Sehun’s. For a moment, Sehun could do nothing but gape at him as his
fingers steadily unbuttoned his shirt. “What… are you… doing?”
“Hiding is risky. No one comes this way unless to…” he didn’t finish as he
yanked Sehun’s shirt down to his elbows, baring his chest and shoulders. Then
without any warning, he cupped a side of Sehun’s face and smashed his lips onto
his neck. Sehun gasped at Kai’s warm lips and tongue kissing along the side of
his neck while Kai’s other hand gripped his hip. He saw the men’s eyes darting
over to them and they looked flushed when Sehun unconsciously let out a moan as
Kai deliberately nipped at his skin near the collarbone. The Snatchers turned
around at once as Sehun raised his palms to Kai’s toned chest and felt the heat
pelt against his hands. Kai slowly and very gently dragged his tongue up the
vein of Sehun’s neck and Sehun almost moaned again when he felt the stubble on
Kai's jawline graze his cheek.
Then everything abruptly stopped. Kai pulled back and glanced over to the
Snatchers who had long left in a frenzy. “Fuck.” He spat under his breath and
began to fasten the buttons of his shirt. “Come on. We should get going.” He
leapt off the platform of the wall and began to march toward the forest. Sehun
stood still for a minute, panting hard with the sleeves of his shirt gathered
at his elbows and mouth insanely dry while Kai walked away as if nothing had
happened.
***** Cranberry Pies *****
Chatters and whispers coursed through the strips of students on either sides of
the walkway. The shakiness of the drawbridge still danced beneath the soles of
his feet as he quietly trod on Kai’s footsteps. The delirious whispers clogged
his ears and the rude gazes pierced through his soul with its ugliness. Sehun
was once again a Freak with a capital letter F amidst these Aliens. Every last
one of them must probably have been informed of the unthinkable encounter last
night. Among all these eyes, Sehun only longed to see the set that belonged to
Kris. His heart steadily raised the pace of its beat when he failed to locate
Kris in the murmuring crowd.
“Make way!” Dillan’s voice clamoured through the chaos of rumours and Kai came
to a standstill, as did Sehun. The headmistress emerged from the crowd wearing
an exhausted expression that clearly spelled out her relief and distress. Sehun
tried to hide his frown despite his helplessness in the face of confusion. Kai
had refused to enlighten him any further than he already had and Sehun’s sphere
of doubt was only blown bigger. He knew the headmistress would have the answers
he needed, but he doubted she’d reveal anything more than what Kai already had.
“Are you both all right?!” she wheezed, grabbing Kai by his arms. The wrinkles
that creased her forehead deepened as her eyes darted to Sehun past Kai’s
shoulder.
“We’re fine.” Kai answered blatantly and shrugged her hands off his arms. “We
should talk.”
“We should.” Dillan sighed as she removed her eyes from Sehun and fixed them
back on Kai. “They’ve made quite a mess.”
Kai nodded once before he glanced around to the crowd with a deadly scowl.
“Don’t you have classes to get to?!”
At once, the crowd dissipated and along with Headmistress Dillan’s orders, the
students vanished from the entrance. “Now, come with me.” She ushered Kai to
walk and Sehun heaved a sigh before following. “Where are you going?” she
stopped to look back at Sehun with scrutiny. “Get some rest and I hope you’ll
be able to attend your lessons soon. I’ll ask you to come in sometime this
week. For now, rest.”
That’s it? After everything that has just happened, she’s gonna pretend like
there’s nothing to explain?! “My… roommate, Kris.” He inquired.
“He’s all right.” Dillan answered almost immediately.
After bowing his head, Sehun turned towards his tower half-heartedly. He needed
those answers now. But neither he nor Dillan seemed like they would be able to
address the questions. He honestly did not understand how Dillan was planning
to keep him safe in this academy anymore. Why should she in the first place?
But according to Kai, the safest place for him to be at right now was here.
Close to him.
Speaking of close to him…
“Weirdo attracts trouble like nobody’s business.” Sehun was forced to a stop
when the whispers reached his ears. With his hands clenched at his sides, he
pinned the upperclassmen with a ferocious glare. They sneered at him and Sehun
realized he did not harbour the strength to entertain their crude remarks at
the moment. He proceeded to his dorm with his ears ringing. Something told him
that these people only had an idea of what might have happened, but probably
was not clear of the details. The so-called mobsters could be after anyone.
Even so, it was better for him to stay cautious. There were people who dealt
with the Snatchers all over the school.
His knees almost buckled as they carried him up the stairs. The burning
sensation under his feet thirsted him to rip his shoes off at once. By the time
he reached the door of his room, he knew that the exhaustion of walking for
miles was surging through his body. His hand idly rested on the door’s handle
for a minute before he exhaled a tired breath and pushed the door open.
He was not sure what he was expecting to find, but the empty room before him
dejected him in a way that was incomprehensible. His eyes unconsciously moved
to Kris’ neat and vacant bed. His body twitched when he heard the heavy and
hurried footsteps behind him.
“Sehun!” Baekhyun cried, bracing himself against the doorframe to catch his
breath with a hand to his chest. “Jesus fucking… Oh God, what the hell happened
to you?!” he stepped into the room with a frown playing on his face.
“It’s a long story.” Sehun stated, sighing as he dragged his feet to his bed
that welcomed him with open arms. “I’m dead beat.”
“Yeah, you look like shit.” Baekhyun lowered his voice, but his expression
still screamed either excitement or agitation, Sehun couldn’t tell. “The bell
rang in the middle of the night. Everyone was…”
Sehun dropped onto the bed on his stomach and buried a side of his face into
his feather-stocked pillow. Baekhyun settled to sit on the edge of Kris’ bed.
“People…” Baekhyun started again, but trailed off, licking his lips. Fatigue
yanked at Sehun’s eyelids. He needed to take his shoes off, but that could
wait. His eyes and body needed some sleep. “Everyone’s saying that it was the
mobsters. And they were… after someone. No one knew it was you until this
morning. And you… were with… Shark?”
No, Sehun most certainly did not want to hear or say a word about Kai right
now. Hell, he did not even want to think about him! The way his tongue glided
up his neck… The way his strong hands clutched his hips… He was just a rugged,
rough beast with incredibly soft lips. No! No! No! Don’t think about it or
him!Sehun clenched his eyes momentarily, sucking in a sharp breath. “Hm.” He
droned with his throat sore.
“Oh my God, so it’s true!” he rasped.
“Have you seen Chanyeol?”
“No. He’s been AWOL since last night.”
“I see… Baekhyun, if you don’t mind… I’d like to rest my eyes for a while.”
“Yeah, yeah.” He shot up at once. “You… rest. I’ll talk to you later.” Sehun
doubted that Baekhyun, or anyone else for that matter, was aware of the fact
that he had jumped off a tower. Baekhyun fidgeted for a moment, scratching the
back of his head. “You’re… okay, right?”
“I’m fine. Don’t worry.”
“Okay.” With a nod, Baekhyun hesitantly left the room, closing the door behind
him. Kai’s heat still clung to his body like silk draped over his naked
shoulders. He understood that Kai had only done it to distract the Snatchers
and he knew that Kai did not bother to explain his actions because it was an
understandable situation. It meant nothing. Absolutely nothing.It would mean
nothing to a man like Kai. But to a boy who had never been even touched, let
alone have another man’s lips on his skin, it meant a great deal. Kai just took
the liberty of touching Sehun in a way that no one had. So that’s how it’d feel
when a guy touches you… kisses your neck…
“For fuck’s sake!” he grunted and tossed in his bed before draping an arm over
his eyes. He needed a shower. He needed to get out of these clothes. But he let
sleep claim him.
 
 
His sentience swirled in the land of quiet, heedless of the actual world. Days
might have passed in this dreamless darkness that was soothing to the sores on
his body. He felt warm under the safety of his duvet. His feet were pressed
against some sort of softness. His bare feet. Even half-asleep, Sehun was aware
of the contented smile that tugged at the corners of his lips and the warmth
against his body. His naked body.
Sehun cracked an eye open to the dark room. His lips were chapped when he
swiped his tongue over them. His mouth felt dry and his stomach grumbled the
instant he realized he had not eaten. Stirring under the duvet, he felt his own
unclothed legs tangle around one another. He definitely did not recall
stripping down to his boxers before he drifted into sleep. He slowly sat
upright and gazed to the floor next to the bed and spotted his sneakers neatly
arranged in a corner. Running a hand through his tousled hair, he drew in a
long breath before yawning it out.
Just when he sat up on the edge of the bed, the door was shoved open and the
gap poured in an intense amount of brightness that blinded Sehun for a second.
The tall figure that turned the lamp on shifted its weight before its widened
eyes landed on Sehun. “K-Kris!” without even thinking twice, Sehun hurtled off
his bed and crossed the room in a fanatic rush.
“Se—uh.” Kris staggered a step back as his arms grappled Sehun’s waist when
Sehun pounced on him, throwing his lean arms around Kris’ neck.
“You’re okay!”
That was when Kris jammed him back, breaking the embrace with a brutal shove.
When Sehun had been forced to retreat, he gaped at Kris in horror. Kris’ cheeks
were flushed with colour and his jaw flexed before he glanced over to the door.
Sehun followed his embarrassed gaze and for the first time, he noticed the two
upperclassmen, including Suho, who stood there by the door with their brows
arched in an interchangeable manner. He looked back to Kris with a frowning
furrowing his own eyebrows. Kris still seemed embarrassed, if not ashamed as
his cheeks grew redder. “You’re up.” Kris said, rather disinterestedly.
Sehun’s eyes darted from Kris to the two upperclassmen again before he fixed
them on Kris. “I was… worried about you.”
Kris licked his lips and nodded. He looked more than fine. He was in one piece,
he was still all shiny and clean, unlike Sehun at the moment. “I’m glad you’re
okay.” Kris muttered, side eyeing Suho and the other upperclassman.
“Whoa, Kris.” Suho chimed as a playful smirk formed on his lips. “I didn’t know
you swing that way with our little Sehun here.”
“Shut up.” There was not a single hint of humour in Kris’ tone and a scowl
crossed his expression. Sehun cringed at his response, but tried to not to show
his chagrin.
“Sehun, what exactly happened?” Suho shifted his attention to Sehun. “You just
vanished with Shark! You’ve no idea how famous you are right now! None of us
have any clue about what happened to you but after the mobsters’ intrusion, you
just vanished! Dillan said that you were under the protection of a teacher.
Where were you?! What the fuck happened?!”
“You could’ve just asked Kris.” Sehun interrupted and Suho shot Kris a
sceptical glance.
“Kris?” the other upperclassman scoffed. Sehun wondered if he was the one that
was called Darien. “How would he know? You didn’t tell us anything.” The guy
looked somewhat disappointed as he passed Kris a perplexed expression.
“I don’t know what he’s talking about.” Kris mumbled, frowning and Sehun
blinked vacantly. “Leave us for a moment, I’ll catch up.”
“Oh.” Suho cooed. “All right. We’ll leave you two lovebirds alone.”
“Get the fuck out before I blow your face.”
“You sure you don’t wanna blow someone else in that time?”
Kris, for one, was not taking the banter easy. His expression gave it all away.
He did not even like being teased on. For some odd reason, Sehun’s heart sank
to his stomach. “Suho, there’s nothing like that.”
“Jeez. I was just kidding, man. Stop getting all riled up for nothing. I know
that you hate those randy-boys. Fine. We’ll leave you now. Don’t be late.” Suho
spat and threw an arm around his friend’s neck before they walked away. Kris
did not bother to close the door when he faced Sehun again, heaving a loud
sigh.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Kris snapped and Sehun helplessly scowled.
“Wow. You sure know how to take the words out of my mouth.”
Kris closed his eyes for a moment and rubbed his temples. “How are you?”
“Oh. So now you seem to care?” Sehun crossed his arms over his chest and
realized how naked he was except for the scanty boxers.
“Hey, I’m sorry.” He extended an arm and his fingers only brushed Sehun’s arm
before Sehun flinched away from the touch.
“Don’t.” he stopped him. “You’re a homophobe in front of your friends but
you’re gay.”
“I’m not… gay!” he exploded, taking a step forward, forcing Sehun to retreat a
step.
“Sure. Whatever.” Rolling his eyes, he started back to his bed. “You saved me.
Why didn’t you just tell everyone what happened? You were there.” He flumped on
the end of his bed as Kris finally closed the door.
“And they’d ask what I could possibly be doing at the tower with you at that
hour.” Kris admitted and it took Sehun a moment to realize what he was meaning.
Scoffing, Sehun gripped the edge of the mattress. “Wow… Because Suho brings
chicks to rut up there. You bringing me there would automatically mean—”
“Headmistress Dillan has asked me to keep it a secret. She… I…” he sighed,
slumping against the door. He stood silent for a long moment and as the silence
stretched between them, he looked more uncomfortable. “Who are you, Sehun?” his
abrupt question threw Sehun off a little.
This time, Sehun stared at him nervously. “What do you mean?”
“Those mobsters… they were after you. They were… legit after you.”
“I know. That’s… quite obvious, isn’t it?”
“They were determined to get their hands on you.”
“I’m aware.”
“If it weren’t for Headmistress Dillan who showed up, I might be dead as a
doornail right now.”
The thought sent a shudder down Sehun’s spine. “I’m… I’m sorry.” He murmured,
swallowing the lump that began to rise in his throat. “I don’t know anything
either, Kris.” He lied. “All that I do know is that Kai is determined to
protect me.”
“Yeah. Almost the entire academy saw you walking in with him today. Why would
he protect you? You said that everyone has secrets. What exactly is yours,
Sehun? ‘Cause what happened last night… it was not something that you see every
day. You could have died.”
Sehun pursed his lips.
“You should get ready.” Kris stated at last, pulling away from the door before
he opened it. “There’s an assembly in a moment.”
Sehun wondered what the time was. “Now?”
“Yeah. I’m guessing you must be the guest of honour ‘cause Dillan asked me to
call you down personally.”
“Okay.”
Kris nodded his head. “Okay.” He muttered and turned his back to Sehun to walk
away.
“Uhm… Kris?”
He stopped in his tracks but he didn’t turn to face Sehun. “Yes?”
“How long are you planning to…” Sehun did not need to finish the sentence for
Kris to grasp it.
“You don’t know anything about me, Sehun.” his tone sounded miserable, but he
squared his shoulders.
“I’m sure I don’t. But you know who you are.”
“Stop. You’ve misunderstood me.”
“Really? Turn around, look me in the eye and tell me that you’re happy
pretending to be someone that you’re not.”
Kris made no response for a minute. Then he said, “You’re just delusional,
Sehun.” with that, he walked away.
 
 
 
Maybe it was just Kris who was not all excited to see Sehun again. Because the
rest of the school seemed to gorge their eyes on him as he strutted past the
hallway. Apparently, he hadn’t slept for days, only for the entire morning and
afternoon. He did not lower his head, instead he held his chin high as he
walked past them. “He left the school grounds for an entire night.”
“He was with Master Kai.”
“That’s even weirder. Did they run away from the mobsters?”
“God knows.”
Sehun closed his eyes for a short second, letting out an exasperated breath. He
balled his hands into fists. He came to a stop in the corridor leading to the
assembly hall when his eyes fell on Kai who was standing a few feet before him,
leaning against a pillar with his hands stuck in his pants’ pockets and head
tilted back on the pillar. He was staring at the ceiling as if the students who
crossed him were invisible. Sehun tried to chuck the lewd thoughts—that
recalled the feeling of Kai’s tongue and lips on his neck—as far away as he
could. Kai tore his eyes from the ceiling and looked to Sehun without any
expression on his face. Sehun’s breath hitched. Kai pulled his hands out of his
pocket and drew away from the pillar. The gold band around his finger stung
Sehun’s eye and he wasn’t sure why he was beginning to glare at the wedding
ring. The wedding ring that Sehun had not noticed before. The wedding ring that
was non-existent last night.
He looked up from the glimmering ring and met Kai’s unreadable eyes. Slowly
sliding his hands back into the pockets, Kai advanced forward and with his
heart racing, Sehun took a couple of steps closer. What should I say? What
would he say?
When they stopped with a feet distancing each other, Kai opened his mouth.
“Dillan wants to see you if you’re okay with it.”
Sehun’s stomach churned as if that was not what he was wanting to hear right
now. But he bowed his head. “Okay. When?”
“Right after the assembly.” He supplied. “I’m sorry.”
Sehun stood stock-still, unable to have himself blink or gape. “What… for?”
Kai licked his lips and sucked in an aggressive breath. He looked away from
Sehun with his eyebrows knitted. “I didn’t mean it when I said you destroyed my
family.”
“Oh.” was all that Sehun could come up with. He had not demanded Kai an
explanation for that accusation—well, it wasn’t as if Kai would give any
anyway. Gnawing on his lower lip, Sehun rubbed his fingers in his palms,
fidgeting. “Why… did you say that in the first place?”
“I’m not… in the mood.” Kai sighed. “It’s been a long day.”
Sehun nodded as if he understood. “And… I haven’t… thanked you.”
Kai looked at him in disbelief before a faint smirk flashed across his face.
“Do you have that much manners?”
That had Sehun scowling inevitably. How can someone be so charming and
irritating at the same time?! Charming… charming?!“You really try to be an ass
as much as you can, don’t you?”
Kai smirk was fully fledged now. “And… about what I… did—”
“Sehun! Oh my God, Sehun!” Before Sehun could even turn around, Chanyeol
grabbed him from behind, wrapping his arms around Sehun’s shoulders, pressing
his chest to Sehun’s back.
“Chanye—”
“I need to have a word with you.” Kai’s laidback expression completely changed
into a grave one before his hand clutched at Sehun’s arm and he ripped Sehun
away from Chanyeol’s arms.
“Wait, Kai—” Sehun could not protest as Kai hauled him away from Chanyeol.
“Hey, Sehun!” Chanyeol hollered, but didn’t pursue after him.
“Shut up. Think about anything but what I told you.” Kai hissed under his
breath as his hand crushed Sehun’s arm.
It registered to Sehun at once. Chanyeol would definitely read his mind if his
thoughts were focused. “Fireflies.” He immediately pointed at the flickering
lights of fireflies across the lawn as Kai yanked him past a couple of students
who loured at them. “Do you like cranberry pies?”
“Yes. Very much.” Kai spat through his gritted teeth. “My mother used to make
wonderful cranberry pies. I love cranberries.”
“Really?” Sehun looked over to where Chanyeol was standing. “What about your
wife?”
“Not as much as I love cranberries.”
Sehun winced at him. “I meant does she make wonderful cranberry pies.”
“I’m sure I wouldn’t find out and live to tell the tale.”
“Whoa. Why are you such a jerk to everyone?!”
Kai kept mum as he yanked Sehun into the assembly hall through the back
entrance and cornered him behind the red drapes. “Look. Whatever you do, don’t
ever think about anything that I’ve told you when you’re around that boy.”
“That’s going to be rather difficult, don’t you think?!” Sehun retorted. Kai
still had his hand gripping his arm but when Sehun glanced down at it, he
withdrew his hand. “I mean he’s around me most of the time.”
“Then you’re going to have to learn to control your thoughts.”
Sehun almost shuddered when he realized how close they were standing before
each other behind the curtains of the hall. The last time they were standing
this close, Kai had his mouth all over his neck, his chest against Sehun’s
chest. “You kissed me.” He blurted out and gasped, immediately regretting the
words escaping his mouth.
Kai blinked blankly. “I did not.”
“Yes, you did.” Sehun hissed in a whisper. “I can’t believe you’re just going
to ignore that!”
 
Kai clenched his jaw.
***** My Jerk *****
“Even an idiot like you should be able to understand the situation we were in
at the moment.” Kai snarled through his grit teeth, wearing a thin scowl across
his dark eyebrows. “Why do you think Alma runs the lodge there? No one goes
there except to rut.”
Sehun tore his gaze away from Kai’s eyes and fixed it on the slit between the
curtains. The entire hall was congested with confused and annoyed students and
their mutterings. Every last one of them wore a disturbed expression on their
faces and none of them clearly had any real clue of the purpose of this abrupt
and unanticipated assembly. Glancing away from the narrow gap, he looked to Kai
again with a frown. “I understand why you did that.” He muttered, licking his
lips. “But still… you could have distracted them in some other way.”
“Really? What next? You’re gonna reprimand me for forgetting to bring my magic
wand along?” Kai scoffed before extending an arm past Sehun’s shoulder. Sehun
tried his best to not to cringe away or flinch or get used to Kai’s heat
clinging to his own skin like this. How much more pathetic are you going to
get, Sehun?! Snap out of it. Kai pulled the slit open and leaned forward to
peer out at the hall. Turning his face away, Sehun attempted to take a step
back when Kai’s chest almost collided into his. “Besides…” his breath grazed
Sehun’s ear before he withdrew and straightened his back. He blinked at Sehun’s
cheeks and Sehun realized that they were filled with blood, probably flushed
and red. “Stop acting like you’re some virgin girl.”
Whatever that Sehun could say at this moment would only result in him being
further embarrassed. “What are we doing here?” he decided to divert the
attention of the topic at hand.
Kai kept his eyes on the gap between then drapes, but his scowl was definitely
still on Sehun. “Your friend is there.”
“Who? Chanyeol?”
“You need to stay away from him.” Kai removed his gaze back to Sehun’s eyes.
“Kris said he’s been hanging out with those kids that have parents who deal
with the Snatchers. Do you think… he might be trouble?”
“He definitely is. He’s been away from classes as well.” Kai’s scowl deepened.
“Be wary of whom you befriend. You need to control your thoughts when you’re
around him.”
“How can I control my thoughts? The more I try to not to think about something,
the more I actually think about it.”
“It’s not impossible.” He clasped a hand to Sehun’s arm and for an instant, he
froze when Sehun shuddered under his touch. He quickly retrieved his hand and
looked away for a second. “All you need to do is think about something else
that’s important, but not as important as the thought that you’re trying to
keep away. Think about the things that you want him to see. Discipline your
mind to think about something that will distract both of you.”
Then it hit Sehun. “You’ve been doing just that, haven’t you?”
Kai looked a little ashamed and a little proud at the same time. His trademark
smirk finally took over his plush lips. “He only sees and perceives what I want
him to.”
Sehun wondered just about how powerful and determined Kai was beneath all those
lackadaisical attitude. He let his eyes wander just a little lower and
swallowed, staring at the bronzed chest’s cleft that was exposed by the top two
undone buttons of Kai’s shirt. “So… you know and decide everything that
Chanyeol should know.”
“Precisely. I’ve had experiences with more than one telepathic Flairer.”
“But… why can’t he know? Why can’t he know that I’m the only—”
“Shh!” Kai snapped. “Don’t think about that, don’t speak of that, don’t even
dream about that, do you understand? There are Flairers with super hearing
sense here.”
“Oh. Right.” Sehun realized the conversation up to this point was not as
important as the secret Sehun and Kai and assumedly Headmistress Dillan carried
with them.
“Good evening, dear students of FLAC.” Dillan’s voice reverberated and washed
through the hall before the cacophonous noises died. Kai peeped out the slit
again and brushed past Sehun.
“You stay here. After the assembly, go straight to your room. I’ll send someone
to get you when Dillan’s ready for you.”
“What about dinner?” Sehun glowered and as if on cue, his stomach growled
consciously. Or maybe it had just registered to him that it had been grumbling
for a while now. “I’m hungry.”
Kai let out a vexed groan, rolling his eyes. “Fine. Wait here.” With that, he
disappeared out of the curtains and Sehun slumped back against the wall behind
him.
“We…” the headmistress stopped herself for a moment before continuing. Sehun
did not dare to look through the gap as he stood still with his head hung and
kept his ears attentive. “I… will have to apologize for the turbulence that was
caused last night. I can only assure you that for now, all is well and we are
safe. I have personally took the matters into my own hands and have dealt with
them, rather proficiently. However, there is no point in denying that a quite
significant proportion of you have already buttoned down the conflicts and
upheavals this academy is facing presently.”
Sehun’s chest tightened. Something told him that the headmistress’ care for him
was justifiable, but he had no clue of what sort of justification Dillan could
personally have. Sure, avoiding major catastrophes and the end of the world as
they knew it were reasonable grounds. But the way she was trying to protect
Sehun and ensure that he did well in his classes surely should have better
justifications.
“Nevertheless, it is FLAC’s responsibility to ensure our students’ safety and
security. Therefore, the teachers and I have opted for a consolidation of
regulations and curfews.” A loud groan of discontent and dissatisfaction wove
across the hall. “Silence, please.” She said calmly, but in an authoritative
tone. “This is to make certain that none of you will be in the face of harm.”
“Is this all because of the problem that freshman kid caused?!” someone
screeched from the corner of the hall and Sehun found himself wincing.
“As I’ve said, this will procure us all the safety we seek!” Dillan yapped. “At
least for the time being. None of you will step out of campus grounds without a
written consent signed by me. All should be in their dorms—and this includes
all seniors as well—by the thirteenth bell that is sharp 8pm and will not be
out of their dorms before the first bell. Those who fail to follow these
curfews will be severely harangued and in worst cases, they shall be expelled
from FLAC. Thank you for your cooperation and you may now proceed to the feast
hall for dinner.”
Sehun’s ears rang as the entire hall drowned in disapproving complaints and
barks. This isn’t because of you. It’s for the safety of everyone. Sehun tried
to convince himself, but miserably failed. Kris was in danger last night
because of him. He could have put Kai in danger as well. Heaving in a great
sigh, he scrubbed his face with his sweat-doused palms and when he pulled his
head back up, he almost gasped and jumped with Kai glaring before him. “When
did you—”
“Come on.” Kai started out the back entrance and Sehun sighed one last time
before following him onto the corridor. “What do you want to eat?”
Sehun arched his brows in surprise. “Uh… anything would do.”
“Given up on being vegetarian?” Kai snorted as Sehun tried to keep up with his
long strides.
“Yeah. A couple of days back.” Sehun shrugged. “Meat isn’t half as bad as soy
meat.”
“Really?” he scoffed and tossed Sehun a stoic look over his own shoulder.
Scowling, Sehun hurried up to walk alongside him. “Yeah, okay, fine. I’ve
secretly eaten meat before.”
“That’s more like it.” Kai seemed amused as he led Sehun up the stairs of a
tower. Sehun wondered if he should ask where Kai was bringing him, but let that
thought slip when Kai said, “You’re not as innocent as you’d like people to
believe, are you?”
“Trust me.” Sehun sneered. “I’d like people to believe that I’m not that
innocent but for some odd reason, everyone takes me for a weakling and a…
Freak.”
“You do give off that vibe.” Kai shrugged and Sehun fought the urge to smack
him in the back of his head. The marched up the flight of stairs with a
strangely comfortable silence stretching between them. Sehun stole glimpses of
Kai once in a while and it was cooling to know that Kai was warming up to him,
whether his jerk liked to admit it or not.
“Why does she want to meet me?”
Kai was tight-lipped for a moment as they reached the floor. There were doors
on either side of the floor, just like the dorms’. “You know why.” He murmured,
starting towards the hallway.
“I… still don’t get why she would want to protect me whereas the rest of you
would just sell me off—”
Kai spun around at once with a brutal glare etched on his face, stopping Sehun
in his tracks. “She’s not the only one who wants to protect you, okay?”
Sehun’s eyes widened and he pursed his lips for a short instant. “Right. You?
Until last night, I was just a Leftover for you to endure in your class. You
said it yourself. You don’t actually care about me. You only care about the
mob—Snatchers. And the consequences of them getting their hands onto my Flair.
You didn’t even care about how I’d feel when you—”
“I wasn’t talking about me.” Kai said rather blatantly.
This time, Sehun blinked vacantly as his throat turned into sandpaper. Flushed
and flustered, he lowered his eyes. “Oh.”
“Many people apparently do care about you. Not all of them will be willing to
sell you off for short-termed peace. Well, I, for one, most definitely would
sell you off if I could rid myself of you and your loud mouth.” Rolling his
eyes, Kai advanced another step before knocking on the wooden door.
“Has anyone told you how much of a douchebag you are?” Sehun demanded, louring
at the man who was smirking in return.
“All the damn time. Why, has anyone told you how much of an annoyance you are?”
“I—” he was cut off when the door swung open. Mrs Kim stood there for a moment,
looking as if she was looking at a ghost as she kept the door open.
“Oh.” She quickly recovered and flashed them both a smile.
Instantly bowing, Sehun mirrored her pleasant smile. “Good evening, Mrs Kim.”
“Good evening, Sehun.” She did not seem as scary as she had the other day. In
fact, seeing her in sweatpants and an oversized t-shirt made her look even
younger and naïve. Sehun genuinely smiled at her. “What happened at the
assembly?”
Kai pushed past her first before sighing, “Well, the brats weren’t all too
happy about what Dillan had to say.”
“You ought to remember that you were once one of those brats, too.” She
snickered and looked back to Sehun, gesturing him to enter. Sehun nodded once
before hesitantly stepping into the room. He froze right on the entrance’s
hallway as he gaped at the interior. The entire place looked like a lavish
apartment, but only with antique and furniture of yore. All sorts of wooden
furniture with intricate patterns and an unbelievable amount of lilies and
hydrangeas adorned the room, from table to table and from corner to corner.
Small crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, brightening the entire room
with their brilliance.
“Wow.” He breathed out despite himself and felt a light nudge on his arm. He
faced Mrs Kim’s playful grin and blushed. “Your house looks… amazing, Mrs Kim.”
Kai paused unbuttoning his shirt and pinned Sehun with a look that was
impossible for him to comprehend before glancing away.
“Call me Dee.” She shrugged and walked over to Kai before resting her hand on
his arm. She whispered something and Kai looked smug as ever. Sucking in a long
breath, Sehun focused on the photo frames on the side table. Kai looked
incredibly young in one of the photos as he had an arm crooked around a very
young Dee’s waist. He was smiling—no, laughing with her. He looked up at Kai
again and took in the fatigue that overtook Kai’s face now. He had grown older
and more tired. When Kai’s eyes darted over to him, Sehun dropped his gaze back
to the photo frames.
“I’m gonna get changed.” Kai told his wife at last. “Get his scrawny ass
something to eat, will you?” with that, he vanished into one of the rooms.
Letting out an exasperated breath, Dee waved at Sehun, gesturing him to follow
her into the kitchen. “So, how old are you again?” she asked when they were
standing in the kitchen. Sehun eyed the round table in the middle of the
kitchen before looking up at her.
“Turning 17 next month.”
“Ah. Everyone must be doting when it comes to you.” she chuckled, grabbing the
halved loaf of bread and a bottle of jam from the refrigerator.
“It’s quite contrary to that.” Sehun sighed. “Mrs Kim, don’t trouble yourself.
I wasn’t expecting him to bring me over here. I can get something to eat.”
“Don’t be silly. It’ll be nice to make food for someone once in a while.” She
smiled as she began to slice the bread.
“Oh… Doesn’t he… eat?”
“He does eat.” Dee laughed as if the idea of Kai not eating amused her. “He
eats like an animal. Metabolism problem.”
“Really?” this surprised Sehun. But it was logical that Kai’s Flair would
demand him extra source of energy.
“Yep. He just doesn’t like my cooking.”
“Wow.” He laughed at that. “He isn’t the most chivalrous man, is he?”
“Not at all.” She fished the butter out of the refrigerator. “But he has never
brought another student home, not even his best student. I’m truly shocked that
he’d let you in.”
Sehun had nothing to say to that. He was shocked about the new information as
well.
“I’d make you a proper meal, but—”
“Oh, no. It’s okay. I’m grateful for anything.”
She wore a faint smile as she handed Sehun the plate of sandwich. “Sit down and
dig in.”
“Thank you.” he muttered, taking his seat at the table. For once, the bread was
not stale and the jam was not too sour. They dropped on his stomach with a thud
and he threw Dee a grateful glance.
“How long have you two been married?” the question came out on its own.
Dee gawked at him for a moment before her sweet smile returned to her thin
lips. “We got married after graduating from FLAC.” Of course they went here
too. “We were married for about… three years.”
Sehun’s eyes ballooned. “Were… married?”
“If you’re done, can we go?” Kai showed up all of a sudden, sporting a white t-
shirt beneath a black leather jacket. Sehun quickly gobbled down the rest of
the sandwich and shot to his full height to bow down at Dee with a full mouth.
“Thank you for the sandwich.”
“No problem.” Dee returned his grin before turning to Kai. “We need to talk
about last night.”
Kai exhaled heavily, running his hand through his hair. “No. You.” he pointed
at Sehun. “Come.” He started to walk away.
“You’re always impossible!” Dee squawked behind them as Sehun hurried after
Kai.
“Wait.” Sehun caught his arm just when Kai pulled the door open. When Kai
glared down at his hand around his arm, Sehun withdrew his hand. “You’re not
married, are you?”
“That is absolutely none of your business. Out.” He jerked his head sideways at
the door and Sehun clenched his jaw before storming out of the door.
 
===============================================================================
 
 
“Sehun, come in.” Headmistress Dillan rose from her seat by the desk and shot
him a frail smile. Kai did not enter the office after ushering Sehun into it.
“How are you?” the woman seemed relieved beyond understanding and Sehun noticed
the stars in her old eyes.
“I’m all right, headmistress.”
“Come, son. Take a seat.” She held her hand out to the chair across her desk.
“I’m okay standing, Ma’am.”
Pursing her lips, she sank into her own seat and clasped her hands together on
the desk. “Have you a clue of why I asked to meet you?”
“I could assume that it is about last night.”
“It is. It most certainly is.” She sighed. “I take it that Kai has elucidated
the seriousness of your situation.”
Sehun tried to hold himself back from barking at the headmistress. “To a very
short extent, yes, Ma’am.”
“I suppose you’ll want further explanation. It is understandable.” She said
loud and clearly. “However, I cannot disclose to you anything more than what
Kai has already told you. It is for your own good, whether you choose to
believe me or not.”
Sehun thought he might scoff at the predictability. “I expected just as much
from you.”
“Pardon me?” she arched her brows.
“I am the victim and the centre of attention here, and yet, you choose to keep
me in the dark. What am I to make of it, Headmistress Dillan? Last night, the
Snatchers almost had me! And you’re here telling me that curfews and tightened
regulations will keep me safe?! I want to know what is it that you’re aiming to
achieve and why exactly is that I’m of importance to you.”
Dillan kept her lips sealed for a moment as she stared at Sehun in something
like disbelief. “For now, you should know that you are not in control of your
Flair. If you were to perfect and master your Flair, you’d be one of the most
powerful Flairers out there. And I will do everything in my power to ensure
that you get there. Is that clear enough?”
This time, Sehun scoffed. “You seriously can’t be protecting me just because
you want a star student.”
“Are you aware of the legendary Flairers? The legendary ten? Kai has told you
that you are the only atmokinetic Flairer in this world for the time being. And
there are nine others like you, with unique and special Flairs.”
Sehun let out a mocking laugh despite himself. “What’s next? Magical fairies
and pixie dust?”
That crystal clearly irked Dillan. She shot right up with her hands pressed
onto the desk. “Never mind. You will understand when you understand. For now,
leave. And do know that you are safe for as long as you are under my
supervision.”
“No. Why won’t you just give me a straight answer?! I was accepted into FLAC
despite my age. Why? How did you even find out about me?! Because I received
the application form and prior to that, I’ve never even heard of this place. So
you knew about me first. How?! And do—”
“Mr Oh.” Dillan called in a strong and harsh tone. “You will not question me
and my authority, is that clear? If you covet for your own safety, then I
suggest you abide my orders. Now, leave my office, please.”
Grinding his teeth and balling his hands into fists, Sehun turned on his heel
and burst out of the office. He could feel his pulse pounding in his ears when
he found Kai leaned against the wall next to the door with his arms crossed
over his chest. He passed Sehun an expressionless look before shaking his head.
“What?!” Sehun snapped, unable to contain his frustration.
“You deal with problems and arguments like a five-year-old.” Kai shrugged and
unfolded his arms before advancing towards Sehun. “What did she say?”
Sehun aimlessly glared at the grass lawn across the corridor. “She just
blabbered about the Legendary Ten. Do you know how absurd and ridiculous it
sounds?!”
Kai looked like he was suppressing a laugh.
“What?!” he yapped again.
“Nothing.” Kai snorted. “You get so red when you’re helpless.”
Sehun’s scowl faltered instantly and he almost raised his hands to his cheeks.
“Do… I?”
Their eyes locked for a moment and Kai’s mocking smirk faded just as Sehun’s
flustered frown. Then clearing his throat, Kai broke their locked gazes. “You
should get to your room.”
“Hey, Sehun!”
The call echoed across the corridor, in the crisp night air, disturbing its
calm ambience. Sehun noticed Kai’s glower first before he turned his head
halfway around to meet Chanyeol’s frustrated expression and Heva’s confused
mien next to his. A smile tugged at the corners of Sehun’s lips and he knew
that instant he missed his friend. He had truly missed Chanyeol.
He turned back to Kai and muttered, “I should go say hi.” But before he had
even turned around, Kai’s hand came up to Sehun’s wrist. Again, Sehun found
himself shuddering at Kai’s touch. “Don’t worry. I can control my thoughts.”
“Are you going to avoid me again?”
Sehun spun around and almost jumped when Chanyeol threw his long arms around
his shoulders and pulled him into a proper embrace. His warmth surged through
Sehun’s body and it made him smile against Chanyeol’s shoulder. “I wasn’t
avoiding you.” he murmured, pulling back from his arms.
“Sure you were. You have no idea how worried I was!” he shot Kai a very brief
glance before looking to Heva who chortled.
“You’re all that he’s been talking about to be completely honest.” She sighed.
“Really?” Sehun sniggered. “How have you been?” he asked Chanyeol.
“Can I have a word with you?” Kai interrupted, scowling at the taller man.
“Uh… me?” Chanyeol jerked a thumb at his own chest.
“Yes, you. You two, get to your rooms.” with that, Kai turned around and began
to strut away.
“What’s with that jerk?” Chanyeol groaned and brushed past Sehun to follow
after Kai. My jerk. Sehun smiled at his own thought, but he wondered what Kai
wanted to confront Chanyeol about.
***** A Turn of Events *****
“Okay, so why is raven like a writing desk?” for the first time, Sehun was
nonplussed owing to the fact that Suho could sound intelligent if he wanted to
and he had his own charming way of evoking interest and attention although it’d
take a highbrow to come up with the answers to his riddles. He held everyone’s
attention at the table and people were more engrossed by him and his gestures
rather than his riddles. He carefully lifted the juice box and smugly smiled
before brushing his lips on the tip of the straw. Sehun, just as everyone else,
did not have an answer and Suho flashed one of his victorious smirks as Sehun
took another bite of the garlic bread, awaiting an answer. “Edgar Allan Poe
wrote on them both.”
“Oh, come on!” one of the upperclassmen screeched, hurling a chickpea at Suho
which the latter easily dodged. “I’m sure many of us don’t even know who the
fuck Edgar Allan Poe is!”
“True.” Sehun added, pointing a complimentary finger at the unnamed
upperclassman. “I don’t know who that is either.”
“Your ignorance is not my problem.” Shrugging, Suho side-eyed the girl who was
grinning at him. “Besides, I can’t help the fact that I’m a genius.”
More than one of them coughed, making a crude remark following that
narcissistic comment before the bell tolled, alerting everyone in the feast
hall. Heaving a sigh, Sehun picked up his food tray and rose to his feet. He
stayed close to the upperclassmen until he was out of the hall. Keeping his
head low, he hurried towards the boys’ changing room. Over the weekend, the
heat had somewhat cooled down. But Sehun was certain he was still the most
loathed person in this school. He had been successfully avoiding Kris as well
by spending most of his time in either the library or the study tower. It had
been a rather restful weekend after the dreadful night and strings of useless
revelations.
Now the only thing Sehun was anticipating was the last lesson of the day. After
changing into his training attire, he settled the bag on the sink counter
before running his fingers through his tousled hair to neaten it and
straightened his t-shirt. Laving his hands in the lukewarm water from the tap,
he smiled to himself with his mind swimming in the thoughts of seeing Kai. When
he looked up to the mirror, his heart skipped a beat as his eyes widened at his
pink kissed cheeks. What the hell? He rubbed his cheekbones with the back of
his hands and shook his head. He can’t be blushing. I can’t be blushing!
Letting out an exasperated breath and embarrassed with himself, he turned the
faucet off and grabbed his bag before storming out of the room. The second bell
tolled signalling the start of the lesson and Sehun broke into a slow jog, but
came to a jerky stop when he found Kai and Dillan standing outside Dillan’s
office.
“He’s not ready, mother.” Kai muttered with a disturbed mien before his eyes
darted to Sehun and he instantly fell silent.
“He will be, Kai.” Dillan replied in a quiet hiss but as soon as she noticed
Kai’s scowl, she spun around to meet Sehun who strutted past them without
uttering a word.
“Hey.” Kai called and Sehun came to a halt, but didn’t bother to turn and face
him. He certainly did not want to face the headmistress after his childish
outburst a couple of days back. “I’ll talk to you later.”
Sehun glanced up at him when Kai caught up to his side and they started towards
the CDA locale. “She must really hate me right now.” He sighed and noticed the
faint smirk that shaped his lips.
“No exactly.” Kai scoffed, pinning him with a sidelong glance. “She just thinks
you’re a brat. Just as everyone else does.”
Sehun had no idea how someone could look so charming even while being a jerk.
“It felt as though she only wanted to get me all riled up. She didn’t exactly
let on anything.”
“You have to admit. You’re hilarious when you’re all riled up.”
“I’m glad you find my frustration amusing.”
“I find everything about you amusing actually.”
Sehun cocked a brow to hide his flushed face. “I find that very hard to
believe.”
“Hey, I didn’t say it was a good thing.” He shrugged.
“Of course.” he sighed.
They walked in silence for a while before Kai broke it. “Do you… like smoked
eel with spinach?”
Sehun swallowed. No, he did not like smoked eel but he wouldn’t be surprised if
a guy like Kai did.  And he certainly was not going to be stupid right now and
say no. “Yes, definitely.” He didn’t even know how the thing tasted, but
whatever.
“Do you want to…” Kai was refusing to even look at him as he bit his lip,
keeping his eyes straight ahead. “Come over for dinner tonight?”
“Is Dee cooking?”
“Yes. She wants you to be there.”
“Oh.” Sehun fidgeted and gripped the strap of his bag. “Uhm… should I take the
risk?”
“If you love your life, I wouldn’t recommend it.” He sniggered, smiling a full
smile which was undoubtedly pleasant to look at.
“Well, I would be there. But.” He sighed, realizing the unfortunate fate he
carried with him. “I have a paper to write for tomorrow. Miss Pip would kill me
if I don’t hand it in.”
Kai nodded, licking his lips. “I see—”
“Kai!”
They turned their heads around in unison to meet the source of the call and
Sehun cringed a little when he noticed Miss Hani hurtling across the lawn in
her black boots and skin-tight leather pants. Her chili red lips were stretched
into a beguiling grin as she hopped onto the corridor and almost slipped before
Kai’s arm caught her slim waist to steady her.
“Whoa, thank you.” she giggled and Kai withdrew his arm. Sehun surveyed Kai’s
face for any sort of blushing but found none. Wow, Kai really was an impossible
nut to crack. “Will you be going to the Spring Ball?” she rasped breathlessly
and Sehun could barely take his eyes off her strikingly red lips. All that she
ever talked about was the ball that no one was apparently looking forward to.
Sehun had been having a hard time trying to even get her to learn his name, but
as long as he had a partner that loved to trample his foot, he’d never shine in
her class.
“I don’t know.” Kai answered reluctantly. “Why?”
“I have no date.” She whined with a pout forming on her plump lips. “Is Dee
going with you? I don’t think she’ll be in the mood to waltz with all the
nausea and vomiting, would she?”
“She’s not going.” He stated immediately. “And I’m not going with her.”
“Great, then!” she tossed Sehun a glance and a smile before returning her
attention to Kai. “Come on. Please? I can’t show up with a dance partner!”
“I’ll think about it, Hani.” Kai sighed. “What happened to Jess?”
“Jess can’t be here.” She looked annoyed for a second.
“I’m late for a class. I’ll let you know later.” With that, Kai started in his
path again. Hurrying after him, Sehun couldn’t help but scoff.
“How can you reject a total chick like her? She seems like she’s into you.” but
then again, who wouldn’t be?
Kai blinked and grimaced at him as if he had said something offensive. “She’s
happily married.”
That instant, Sehun felt like the biggest idiot in the world. “Oh.”
Letting out a soft laugh, Kai shook his head. “You’re known for jumping into
conclusions, aren’t you?’
That made him frown. He felt his stomach churn. “Well, so what if she’s
married? Things like this happen, don’t they? And as Alma said, the best part
of marriage is—”
“Whoa whoa.” Kai halted in his tracks but the bemused smirk still remained on
his face. “Let me stop you right there. She’s married to a beautiful woman
called Jessica.”
Sehun’s jaw fell slacking as his mouth went dry. “Oh… Oh.” That was all that he
could let out as Kai broke into a brief laughter. He deliberately passed Sehun
a smug look that stirred the blood all over Sehun’s body.
Just when they reached the locale, Sehun wondered if he should ask Kai about
his marriage to Dee and ask why he wore the wedding band every now and then.
But Kai stormed into the locale before he had the chance and Sehun exhaled
heavily, proceeding to stand with the Leftovers after settling his bag in the
corner. “Right. Good evening, Righters and Leftovers.” Kai’s voice surged and
filled the locale as every other voice died. “It’s time to get real. You’ve
warmed up enough in the past few weeks.”
“Psst.” Sehun turned around with a start and grinned at Baekhyun who reflected
the smile. He quickly perked his head and searched the room for Chanyeol.
“Where’s Chanyeol?” he inquired in a whisper and Baekhyun responded with a
shrug.
“I don’t know. I haven’t seen him in like forever. He didn’t come back to the
room the entire week.”
Frowning, Sehun turned his attention back to Kai who was elaborating on today’s
lesson. He didn’t understand how or why Chanyeol sought for such a disagreeable
company, but apparently those people mattered more to him than Sehun did. The
idea of Chanyeol loafing around with those rebels maddened Sehun.
“Scrappy-Doo!” he looked up to Kai, startled. He was getting used to his jerk
calling him names. When Kai glowered, Sehun realized he was waiting for him to
step forward. “Okay. Now watch and learn. Your opponents will not wait for you
to attack them. If they see a chance, they’ll grab it. Stand straight with your
knees apart.” He said the last part to Sehun and the latter gulped the
uncomfortable lump that began to choke his throat. Spreading his knees, he took
a firm standing, keeping his eyes on Kai’s. His breath hitched silently when
Kai raised his hands to the sides of his waist and latched them there. He tried
to not to let the embarrassment show on his face as Kai lightly gripped his
waist before slowly pushing one of his legs to the back. “Keep a foot at the
front and one at the back for a better ground.” He withdrew his hands and Sehun
bit his tongue when Kai pressed a palm to his chest. “Hold tight.” He muttered
and Sehun found himself lost in those dark eyes that seemed to have softened in
the past few days. He dropped his hand from Sehun’s chest when Sehun had held
his breath in. “And now you throw a punch to my neck. Make sure it’s hard
enough to hit my jugular.”
At that point, Sehun hesitated. He knew that no matter how hard he tried, he
was not going to succeed hitting Kai. He curled his hands into fists and raised
them. Drawing in a deep breath, he went for it. Kai caught his fist before it
even reached his jaw. “Maybe you should demonstrate with someone who’s stronger
than a carrot.” Ziggy scoffed loud enough for the entire locale to hear.
Kai’s hand tightened around Sehun’s fist before he dropped it. “Of course,
Ziggy. You’d know all about carrots, wouldn’t you?” that earned Ziggy a wave of
ridiculing laugh. Kai flashed Sehun a smirk. “Again. Keep trying until you’re
fast enough. Partner up!” he ordered. “Hey, Tiny Tootie! Pair up with Scrappy.”
He retreated from Sehun as Baekhyun took his position.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
Sehun honestly didn’t know how his parents would react to everything that had
happened, but they deserved to know. However, Sehun wasn’t sure if telling them
that he was one of the rarest Flairers would be the brightest idea. It may even
put them in danger. Whatever it was, he surely was excited to talk to them
tonight. Bursting into the room, he unslung his bag and closed the door before
finding Kris sprawled across his bed with one of his long legs dangling over
the edge. He looked up at Sehun through his spectacles and quickly sat up.
“Wait! Don’t leave.” He rasped, jolting up to his feet.
Shrugging, Sehun proceeded to his side of the room and settled the bag on his
desk.
“Sehun.” Kris called.
“It’s okay, Kris. I don’t want to talk about it.” He murmured without looking
to him. “I’ve to do my assignment and head down to the telephone booth before
the thirteenth bell.”
Kris was mum and Sehun finally dared himself to glance to him. He faced Sehun
with a miserable frown before pulling his glasses down. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. I’m passed that.” He flumped onto his chair, sighing loudly.
“Really? Is that why you’re refusing to talk to me and you’re turning your face
away every time we bump into each other outside the dorm?”
Sehun pursed his lips, staring down at his palms.
Kris crossed the room and took his seat on the edge of Sehun’s bed. “Look here,
Sehun. I know that I’ve been a complete ass. I’m sorry. But… it’s not as simple
as you think, you know.”
“I understand.” He mumbled and managed a smile. “I’m sorry, too. For being
inconsiderate. I shouldn’t have tried to dictate your life.”
“No. But you’re my friend and I…” he trailed off, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Point is… I don’t wanna lose your friendship… or you.”
The smile playing on his lips stretched genuinely. “Me neither.”
Kris nodded, exhaling a heavy breath. “Thank you. For not telling anyone.”
“It’s all right. We all have secrets, huh?” he snorted. The secret that Kris
dreaded was not the one he had told Sehun. It was this secret that he was
trying so hard to let go. The least Sehun could do was understand his plight.
“So… how’re things for you?”
“Terrible. You?”
“Same.” He scoffed. “You have no idea what kind of crazy situation I’m in.”
“Enlighten me.” Kris sneered, cocking a brow once.
“Nah. It’s nothing. I thought everything will be perfect here. Now I’m just so
confused about everything and about myself.” And he was becoming involved with
a teacher for crying out loud. He shook the thought away. “And I thought I’d
make friends here. So far the only best friend I had in life is mysteriously
gone.”
“Are you talking about Chanyeol?” Kris frowned.
“Yes. Have you heard about him? His own roommate doesn’t know where he is. Can
you talk to Heva and find out—”
“Sehun.” he cut him off with his frown deepening. “He’s being expelled from the
school.”
Sehun froze in his seat as his ears rang and blood pounded in his veins. “Wh…
what d-do… you mean? Expelled?”
“Yeah.” Kris sighed. “He apparently tried to assault a teacher the other
night.”
Sehun jolted up to his feet. “What?!”
“Only some of us know about this. Sehun… word has it that he’s getting involved
with the mobsters.”
“No.” he sank back in his chair and buried his face in his palms. “That can’t
be true. He’s not that type.”
“I don’t know, Sehun.” Kris got up and clasped a hand to Sehun’s shoulder.
“Maybe he isn’t. But that’s what I’ve heard. And the school is apparently
taking extra measures to stay safe. For you. You know that. And Chanyeol has
been seen with the mobsters recently.”
“God.” He wiped his face and sucked in a shaky breath. “This is unbelievable.”
“I know. Just be grateful that you didn’t get too involved with him.” he patted
on Sehun’s shoulder. “Do you want me to get you something to eat? I’m going
down to the cafeteria.”
“No.” he whispered, completely dazed by the information. “Thanks.”
“All right.” Kris’ hand slithered across Sehun’s nape for a very short moment
before Kris quickly withdrew it. After smiling down at Sehun, he grabbed his
jacket and stormed out of the room.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
“You don’t have to send me anything, mom.” Sehun groaned, leaning his head on
the wall of the telephone booth with the receiver tucked between his ear and
shoulder.
“Don’t be silly, Sehun! It’s your birthday! Just tell us what you want.” His
mother insisted on the other end and Sehun heard his father screeching
something from a distance.
“Anything will do then.” He surrendered. “Mom, I have to run.”
“Oh, no. So early?” he could almost see her pout in the way she whined.
Grinning, Sehun straightened up and sighed.
“I’ll call you again when I can, mom. I love you.”
“All right, sweetheart. Wrap yourself well when you’re going out.”
“Hm hm. Bye, mom.”
“Love you. Good night, Sehun.”
After hanging up, Sehun stepped out of the booth and drew in a deep breath. His
hands itched to clear the mist that congested the hallway but he rather not
take the risk. Sticking his hands into the pockets of his cardigan, he started
towards the spiral stairs of the tower.
Just as he reached the bottom of the stairs, he felt a brutal grip around his
elbow and he almost spun around with a plunging fist before Chanyeol gasped his
name. “Sehun!”
Jumping a foot back, Sehun’s eyes ballooned as his heart began hammering
against his chest. “Chanyeol! What the hell are you doing?!”
“No, please hear me out.”
“No! Stay away from me!” he retreated a couple of steps as he took in
Chanyeol’s bloodshot eyes and crumpled shirt.
“I swear to God, I’m not going to harm you!” he blurted out advancing forward
and Sehun held his hand out, flooding the space between them with the mist and
fog of the cold spring night. Taken aback, Chanyeol staggered as the mist
clogged his vision. “Sehun! Please!”
“Did you assault a teacher?!”
There was no reply for a moment and Sehun felt his blood curdling. He thickened
the fog between them and Chanyeol pulled himself further away to be able to
breathe. “I can explain, Sehun! You’re not—”
“Have you been hanging out with those people?! The ones that want me?! The
mobsters!”
“Yes, but—”
That instant, Sehun knew he was going to lose it. His vision greyed as his mind
began to betray him.
“Sehun, let me speak!”
“You’re not supposed to be here!”
“I know! I need to talk to you!” Chanyeol yapped on the other side of the fog
strip. “Even the boy who was Kris’ roommate before you—”
“I don’t need to hear anything from you!” Shaking his head, Sehun panted and
sobbed for air before he turned on his heel and burst into a sprint with the
almost impenetrable fog trailing behind him. He was drawing further away from
the world. He could barely feel his feet as he raced up the stairs while his
head pounded mercilessly. He could collapse at any given moment now. When he
came to a halt before the door, he hammered his fist on the wooden door
repeatedly.
Kai opened the door wearing an exhausted expression before his eyes bulged out
and eyebrows rose in surprise. “What are you doing here?”
Sehun shoved past him into the room and panted with his chest heaving as he
restlessly paced the hallway as Kai closed the door.
“Hey? What happened?” Kai inquired and Sehun shook his vibrating hands, wanting
his mind to stop fading away. “Sehun?”
He looked up at Kai with his lips parted and gulping all the air he could get.
Sehun.He had said his name for the first time and Sehun’s eyes fell to the lips
that had just uttered his name. Without even thinking for a second, he launched
himself onto Kai and allowed their lips to meet in a violent kiss.
As his hands curled around Kai’s t-shirt by the chest, Kai grabbed the sides of
Sehun’s face and tilted his head to deepen the kiss in hasty desperation. Sehun
was only partially aware of Kai pushing him against a wall while their lips
aggressively tasted one another. He let out a shaky breath when Kai gasped
quietly against his mouth before kissing his lower lip with a sort of force
that yanked Sehun back to reality. The grey washed away as the scent and heat
of Kai’s skin overtook Sehun’s body and mind. They were kissing and Kai was
kissing him back. The tip of Kai’s tongue only lightly brushed Sehun’s upper
lip while his palms burned against Sehun’s cheeks. He lightly moaned into
Sehun’s mouth when Sehun’s teeth grazed his lip.
Sehun’s eyes flashed open and he released his clutch on Kai’s t-shirt as Kai
gently kissed his bottom lip before kissing the skin beneath the lip. With his
lips and breath still ghosting over Sehun’s lips, he stared into Sehun’s
shocked eyes and held his gaze for a moment.
“Kai?” Dee’s voice echoed from the other room and Kai dropped his hands from
Sehun’s face before completely pulling away. Breathless and traumatized, Sehun
braced himself against the wall, trying to catch his breath as Kai looked away,
clearing his throat and rubbing his forehead. “Who’s it?”
Snapping out of it, Sehun drew away from the wall and almost crashed the floor
as his head spun brutally. He staggered to the door and let himself out without
sparing Kai another look. What have we just done…
The question swarmed his head as he lifelessly dragged his feet along the
corridor. The bell toll reverberated behind him and Sehun could pay less heed
to its chime.
When he had somehow reached the door of his room, he rested his forehead on the
door with his hand lingering on the handle. He slowly raised the hand to his
mouth and let his fingertips brush his lips. A wavering smile tugged at the
corners of his kissed and throbbing lips.
Entering the room, he cherished the blood that filled his cheeks for once. He
gently closed the door and leaned his back against it, resting the back of his
head on it. His heart flitted like a butterfly on the first day of summer and
it was such a weird sensation. Goose-fleshed, he pulled away from the door and
quickly made it to Kris’ empty bed before his knees could buckle. The bed and
its sheets smelled like Kris and for some odd reason, Sehun found it soothing.
He buried his face into the pillow, trying to stop himself from grinning like
an idiot. The last bell had tolled. He wondered why Kris wasn’t back yet.
Sitting up, he folded his legs and tried to reminisce the kiss with his fingers
ghosting over his tender lips again. Laughing at himself, he dropped back down
and closed his eyes. He wasn’t sure if he could sleep tonight but for once, he
was wholly happy. Too happy that it seemed surreal.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
His heart almost jumped out of him when the door sprung open. He jolted upright
and blinked his eyes rapidly, adjusting his eyes to the brightness. Heva burst
into the room, doused in sweat from top to toe. “Sehun! Where’s Chanyeol?!”
Scampering onto his feet, Sehun hurried to her side. “Heva, what happened?!” he
croaked with his throat dry as a sandpaper. He gazed out the window and
realized it was still dark outside. He had fallen asleep.
“He was looking for you! Where the hell is he?!”
“I don’t know!” he rasped, unable to comprehend her frustration. “Hey, sit
down.”
“Sehun, you do—”
“Hmm.” The droning caught both of their attentions at once and they turned to
face Kris who stood by the door with his arms crossed over his chest, leaning
against the doorframe. “Come on, Heva. You know better than that.”
“Kris, what’s going on?” Sehun questioned, glancing over to Heva and back to
Kris.
Unfolding his arms, Kris stepped into the room and closed the door behind him.
“You shouldn’t have come here, Heva.” He sighed and Sehun noticed Heva
trembling beside him. She took a step back but stopped when her calves hit the
bedframe. “If you’re looking for Chanyeol, just know that he’s busy at the
moment.”
Heva looked to Sehun with alarmed eyes. “What did you with him?!” she rasped.
“You’ll find out shortly.” Kris smirked and turned to Sehun. “She’s involved
with the mobsters, too, Sehun.”
Heva lurched forward and shoved Kris by the chest. “Mobsters?! Sehun, he’s a
Snatcher!” she exclaimed, panting hard. “Chanyeol and the rest of us are
Minders and Champions of your mother! It was the Minders who were trying to
protect you from him that night! They weren’t mobsters!”
“Oh, that’s enough.” Kris’ hand came up to Heva’s neck and Sehun grabbed his
wrist before he could even touch Heva. The windows exploded into shards of
glasses as the wind gushed in, flooding the entire room with its might as Sehun
shoved Kris back, placing himself between him and Heva. The almost
indestructible wind pinned Kris onto a wall and the man let out a bestial moan
when the back of his head crashed the wall.
“Come!” Heva grabbed hold of his hand before hauling him out of there. Sehun
raced across the hallway with her with his mind stocked with confusion and
perplexity. In a shortage of breath, he gasped for air as his eyes brimmed with
tears.
“What the fuck is going on?!”
“We just found out that you’re theSehun!”
“What?!”
Heva started down the stairs and Sehun hurried along. “Chanyeol! Did you see
him?!”
“I did! But I told him to stay away from me!” he leapt over the stairs and
reached the bottom before Heva. “Will you please tell me what exactly is going
on?! How can Kris be a Snatcher?!”
“You’re useless to them until you have full control of your power! Ugh! We
don’t have time for this right now!”
Sehun did not question her any further as they sprinted along the corridor. He
almost came to a stop when he spotted Kai on the adjacent corridor. “Kai!” he
squawked and Kai spun around before his face lit up with a familiar shock.
“Sehun?” he gasped when Sehun threw himself into his arms. Heva, too took his
side and bent down, gripping her knees to catch her breath. “What the hell is
up with you tonight?!”
Sehun pulled away from the aggressive embrace and looked back. Kris ceased to a
jog before he came to a complete halt and panted, wiping his sweat-covered
forehead. “He’s a Snatcher!” Heva yelped, pointing a finger at Kris whose face
had wilted.
Kai withdrew his arm from Sehun’s back and swallowed. “You can’t do one thing
right.” He groaned, rolling his eyes.
Shrugging, Kris sighed. “She… wasn’t part of the plan. You were supposed to get
rid of that Chanyeol for good.”
Sehun’s heart sank to his stomach as Heva’s eyes popped out, both gaping at Kai
who looked ruthless as ever.
***** Cruelty and Truth are Brothers *****
If there was a word or a phrase that would picturesquely describe his confusion
at the moment, he would use it. Unfortunately, there was not one. All that his
brain could muster was a muddle of blurry images while trying to collect the
scarcely credible scene right before his eyes. He wondered if he was still
asleep and this was all nothing but one of his exceedingly vivid
dreams—nightmareswas more appropriate. He was undoubtedly conscious of his
shoulder blade brushing the hard-muscled chest, but he did not dare to turn his
head and meet Kai’s gaze. For the first time in forever, an irretrievable fear
curled around his heart. What had he walked into? He wished for himself to move
or at least for his heart to stop thumping so loud. But all that he could do
was stand statue-still as Kai’s ragged breath grazed the back of his neck. Heva
was still panting next to him as though she was suffocating. Of course, her
Flair was one of the weakest Flairs, she had all the reasons to be scared right
now. But Sehun didn’t. Even so, he was.
“Where is that bastard, then?” Kris demanded.
“He must have escaped.” Kai replied in a quite tone. “Don’t worry about him.
I’ll take care of it.”
“What about them?” he jerked his chin at Sehun. “Should I knock them out,” Kris
asked calmly. Any calmer, he could be floating. “Brother?”
That was the absolute last straw. Sehun spun around to face Kai with something
close to madness as his eyes stung with peremptory perplexity. Brother?! Kai
refused to make eye-contact with him even then as he kept his scowl fixed on
Kris. “Brother?” Heva let the word out before Sehun could and Kai tossed her a
sidelong glare.
“Knock him out. Get rid of her.” He muttered and Sehun turned to see Kris
raising his hand. Simultaneously, Sehun lifted his hand and jerked it towards
Kris, but before he could summon the wind, a strong arm came around his neck
from behind with a command. Sehun croaked as Kai’s arm instantly choked him.
“Don’t make this any harder than it already is.” Kai grunted into his ear and
Sehun was about to plunge his elbow into Kai’s ribs to let out a scream when
the gust of thick black smoke splashed before him. The delicate edges of the
smoke swirled in the air, blending into the darkness of the night. He was
blinded for a moment by the night-like smoke and the next thing he knew was
Chanyeol emerging from the smoke before his hand grabbed hold of Sehun’s arm
and he hauled Sehun forward. Kai, taken aback by the unforeseen surprise, let
out a gasp when Sehun was ripped away from him before Chanyeol stomped on his
chest, sending him staggering back until his back was smashed against a pillar.
“No!” Sehun heard Kris’ caterwaul as Chanyeol’s long arms curled around his
body along with the black smoke. It all happened so quick before Sehun was even
able to conceive it.
“Heva!” Chanyeol shouted before another arm—not his own—reached out and grabbed
Heva’s arm.  Only then did Sehun notice the man’s figure who was emitting the
inky smog. It looked as if he was being swallowed by the black smoke. Sehun
could not even see the man’s face or anything but the outline of his strong-
built body. Clutching Chanyeol’s shoulder, the unfamiliar man pulled Heva into
himself. It didn’t take him more than a blink of an eye. Sehun saw Kai racing
towards them with a set of widened eyes and gaping mouth. But before he could
even get a foot closer, the smoke engulfed them, blinding Sehun yet again.
Everything blackened and for an instant, he thought that he might have fallen
unconscious. If it weren’t for Chanyeol’s warmth and few other limbs that
enveloped his body, he would have confirmed that he had indeed conked out.
There was no sound and it felt as though he gone deaf and blind at the same
time. He could feel Chanyeol’s heart pounding against his own and could smell
the sweat off him. He could not move but his feet hovered above ground as if he
was levitating.
Then on the spur of the moment, his feet touched the ground and he almost
toppled over if it weren’t for Chanyeol’s arms that held him in place. Sehun
flashed his eyes open and gasped in a mouthful of cold air to fill his starving
lungs. The darkness of the night was still enhanced but the sable smoke began
to withdraw itself. Blinking his stinging eyes, Sehun glanced around at the
uncurling smoke that swiftly dissipated, dissolving into the night. He stumbled
a step back when Chanyeol retrieved his arms and released him. “Thank god,
you’re okay.” He rasped out breathlessly before bending, clutching his knees
and panted.
“Are you all right?” a foreign voice echoed amidst the dark laced greens.
Sehun’s gaze darted to the man who was rubbing Heva’s back as she heaved,
throwing up into the grass she trampled on.
“Hey, are you okay, Sehun?” Chanyeol’s hands abruptly came to the sides of
Sehun’s face. Despite the swimming head, Sehun nodded it with his eyes falling
heavy.
“There, there. Easy.” The stranger who was clad in black clothing as the
Snatchers held Heva’s hair back as she coughed the remaining spew out.
“Sehun?”
“Hm.” was all that Sehun could manage as his stomach tossed and turned while
his head spun. He was scared that if he opened his mouth he would fetch up.
“You feel sick, don’t you?” Chanyeol murmured under his breath as his thumbs
rubbed Sehun’s cheekbones. Pulling Chanyeol’s hands off his face, Sehun took a
couple of steps back and closed his eyes before drawing in a deep breath. His
entire body was shivering a nauseating agony and the lump in his throat was
urging him to open his mouth and spew up. Shaking his head, Sehun sucked in
another shaky breath before he dropped to the grass to sit. “How far did we
travel?” he heard Chanyeol say in the background.
“Pretty far. We’re in the faux chateau’s orchard.” answered the other man.
Sehun did not have the strength to even turn and greet the man. He was not sure
he wanted to. All that he wanted right now was for all of this to be a
nightmare and he would wake up in his room right this instant. He clenched his
eyes again, wishing for all of this to go away. But when his eyes fluttered
open again they were met with the dark vastness of the forest. No, orchard,
Sehun corrected himself. As the nausea began to wear off, it became apparent to
him that he was sitting on the root of a tree with his arms hugging his shaking
knees. “You’re sure he’s the one?” his whisper reached Sehun’s ear oh-so
easily.
This time, Sehun twisted his neck and glanced to the man who stood a few inches
shorter than Chanyeol with his hand still resting on Heva’s back while Heva had
her head settled on the man’s shoulder. Chanyeol looked just as sick, but he
did not look like he would heave any time now. “He is.” It was Heva who
answered. “They… were… after him.”
All three of them shot Sehun a set of mixed looks and he slowly pushed himself
up to his feet before steadying himself with a hand pressed the bark of a tree.
“I knew it the minute I found out Kris and Kai are Dillan’s sons.” Chanyeol
added.
“Heh.” The guy started towards Sehun and Heva held herself against Chanyeol.
Stopping directly before Sehun, the man scanned Sehun’s face with utter
scrutiny. “You’re gonna throw up, aren’t you?”
Slowly shaking his head, Sehun leaned his back against the tree for support.
“Who… are you?”
“Donghae.” The man introduced himself as if Sehun had already known him for
years. “So you’re the prodigal son of Madam Gwenna.”
“What?” Sehun scowled.
“Donghae, he doesn’t know.” Chanyeol interrupted in a haste.
“I reckon.” Donghae muttered, still examining Sehun’s face with furrowed
eyebrows. Ignoring him, Sehun faced Chanyeol with a tired, almost dead
expression.
“Chanyeol… I don’t understand…” he wheezed out. “What’s going on?”
“Sehun, I…” he threw Heva a desperate glance before letting out a nervous sigh.
Walking over to Sehun’s side, he clasped Sehun’s shoulder and smiled faintly.
“Would you believe me if I told you you’re a very important person?”
Sehun had been hearing that quite frequently in the past week. It came as no
surprise to him. “Is this about my Flair? Wait, is Kai…” the thought burned his
heart for a moment. “Is he a… Snatcher? And Kris?”
Chanyeol exchanged a glance with Donghae before bowing his head. “Yes. I knew
that Kris was a Snatcher when I learned he had killed the Minders who was after
him that day. Then I found out Kai isn’t Dillan’s son-in-law, but is in fact
her son. It’s all been just a play.”
Sehun’s jaw fell slacking. “After… him? They were after him?”
“And Kai. Dillan keeps her sons within the academy’s closed gates to protect
them and their snatching activities. They sell unique Flairers to the Sunless
Market. Heva found out that Kris’ former roommate was also gone, Snatched,
thanks to Kris, when we visited the market that day. You were with Kris that
night before Kai took you away, weren’t you? At the tower. ”
Sehun realized his mind was bared out to Chanyeol that instant. He didn’t
bother to hide anything anymore. “I was.” He muttered, lowering his head.
“They must have tried to protect you as well… from Kris.”
Sehun tilted his head back on the tree as he exhaled a shaky breath, unable to
digest the new information. “Why… me?” he whispered out. “Because… I have a
unique Flair? Kai could have just… sold me off when he had the chance.”
“You don’t just have a unique Flair, Sehun.” Chanyeol breathed out as if in
astonishment. “You don’t know who you are!”
“What are you talking about?” Sehun was not sure if he had any strength within
him to listen to anything more, but he couldn’t help himself.
“I’m certain Madam Gwenna would be able to explain the rest better than us.”
suggested Donghae as he curled a hand around Chanyeol’s elbow, drawing him away
from Sehun. “Besides, we don’t know for sure if he’s the boy.”
“He is!” Chanyeol insisted. “Kai almost killed me to keep me away from him! And
Kris killed all eleven of those Minders to keep them away from him. I remember
that night when Kris deliberately provoked Sehun so that his Flair will be
triggered. What do you think they will do if they had one of the Ten under
their influence?”
“Okay, okay. Let’s just bring him back to the faux chateau first. Then we’ll
find out if he really is one of the Ten.” Donghae spat, pinning Sehun with a
fierce, hateful look. Nothing seemed coherent to Sehun at the moment.
Everything was just a blurry mess all over again. His knees were about to
buckle as his eyes snapped shut. What were Minders? Who was Madam Gwenna? Who
was this Donghae? Why would Kai, Dillan and Kris waste so much time if all they
wanted was just Sehun's flair? Who were Chanyeol and Heva and how did they know
so much? How much of his life had been nothing but a lie constructed by others?
How was he important? All these questions swarmed his head, but he neither had
the strength nor the energy to ask them out loud. Instead, he opened his eyes
and stared at Chanyeol for a moment. 
Where are you taking me?
“Home. Your home. And all your questions will be answered, Sehun.”
 
***** The Notorious Brothers *****
The stillness crept over his skin, seeping into his bones. He could feel his
blood running cold as an autumnal wind in his veins. Even so, he felt himself
fall in equanimity with the repose and serenity that surrounded him, blessing
him with their calmness. He felt at ease. More like his spine was in a tranquil
rest. A relieved smile slowly writhed onto his lips and he was vividly aware of
the feathery softness his body and a side of his face were pressed against. The
storm had calmed. The vehement turbulence had been ebbed into nothingness.
Sehun splayed his fingers across the appraised softness and letting out a
gentle sigh of satisfaction, he clenched it. Pillow. Bed. Warmth. Comforting
easement swelled in his heart. Had it all been just a nightmare after all?
With hope distending from within, he dared himself to unlatch his eyes. He met
the darkness with a relaxed familiarity before he clenched his eyes again,
wanting to drift back to the dulcified sleep.
“Are you awake?” the benign voice of a female threw Sehun’s eyes open and he
jolted upright to a sitting position before glancing to the other side.
Blinking his eyes several times to adjust his eyesight to the darkness, he
uncomfortably pushed the duvet that was draped over his lower body and fixed
his blurry gaze on the lean figure that loomed over the edge of the bed.
“Who are you?” Sehun cringed at his own hoarse voice and cleared his throat as
the bedside lamp lit the corner of the room with its golden brightness. He
swallowed, looking to the girl who was frowning down at him. She did not seem
any older than he was, but the tight leather top she sported revealed almost
every part of her upper body. Sehun fluttered his eyes rapidly and averted his
gaze to her legs which, fortunately, were fully covered by the skin-tight
leather pants. All black. Her hands were wrapped by ½ finger gloves and her
ash-blonde hair was tied into a messy high ponytail.
“How are you feeling?” her gentle voice certainly did not fit her outward form.
And neither did her concerned frown. Sehun forced himself to tear his eyes off
her and draw them over the room he was in. His throat turned dry as he took in
the size and lavishness of the room. He had only seen this sort of rooms on the
TV. Extravagance oozed from the wallpapered walls, dark drapes and the crystal
chandelier that hung unlit from the patterned ceiling. Swallowing, he looked
back to the girl with an arched brow.
“Where am I?”
She drew herself away from the bedside table and started to pace the carpeted
floor of the room. She looked a rider—a badass rider. Her heavy sighs brokered
the air as she stopped by the end of the bed with her hands latched to her
waist’s sides. “You’re in the faux chateau.”
“Yeah, what’s that supposed to mean? Am I supposed to know what it means?”
She heaved another sigh with the subtext dumbass. “If you’re fully awake, would
you mind getting out of bed and taking a goddamn shower? You smell like cow’s
piss.”
Sehun tried to keep his composure as he sat up on the edge of the bed. “Thanks.
Not the worst insult I’ve heard, but can I know why I’m here?”
“Because you’re apparently one of the Ten.” She scoffed, crossing her arms over
her chest. “The name’s Xiomara.”
Sehun gave an absent nod. “And you’re a Flairer?”
“Do I look like a Pootle to you?” she raised a fair brow. “Psionic blast.” When
Sehun responded with a vacant expression, she rolled her eyes. “Psychic energy
to explosions.” Subtext, dumbass.
“Oh.” As if that explained anything. Only when he had risen to his feet did he
realize he was clad in unfamiliar clothes. “Um… these weren’t the clothes I was
in.”
Xiomara gave a shrug as if she were bored. “Don’t look at me. I did not stain
your virginity.”
Sehun grimaced, making a face as he shook his head. Straightening his black t-
shirt, he forced his bare feet to move. “So, Xiomara, care to explain why I’m
in Queen Elizabeth’s chamber?”
A smirk crept onto Xiomara’s lips as she scanned Sehun from top to toe. “Do you
wanna take a piss or should we get down to business?”
Sehun considered the offer, conscious of his full bladder. “Where’s the
toilet?”
Her smirk widened as she casually waved her hand towards a red door. She
flumped onto the bed as Sehun entered the bathroom which looked exactly like
what he had in mind. He stopped before the mirror for a moment and clenched the
edge of the sink counter as he drew in steady breaths. He recalled everything
that had happened thus far, but he was not really sure when or where he had
conked out. Where were Chanyeol and Heva? And the other strange guy named
Donghae? Who was this new character called Xiomara in his life? Above all,
where on earth was he?
When he exited the bathroom, Xiomara rose to her feet with an annoyed
expression plastered on her face. “If you’re done, let’s go. Your mother’s
eager to meet you.”
Sehun had been trying so hard to ignore the fact people had been referring to a
woman as his mother. Call it denial or simply ignorance, he really did not want
to inquire on that. But he finally succumbed to curiosity. “Why are you people
calling this woman my mother?”
Xiomara turned on her heel and pinned Sehun with a pair of cocked eyebrows.
“Because she’s your mother?” dumbass.
Sehun let out a humourless chuckle. “I’m pretty sure my mother doesn’t have
henchmen or live in a palace.”
“For the record, we’re not henchmen and this is not a palace. Also, I wasn’t
talking about your adoptive mother.”
That halted Sehun in his tracks as his mind turned into a blank slate for a
minute. “Whoa, wait a second. What?!”
Xiomara shrugged. “How can a Flairer have Pootle parents?!” dumbass. She seemed
almost shocked by Sehun’s ignorance.
“No. No.” Sehun backed off with his palms raised in defence. “This is
bullshit.”
“We can debate about that when you meet Gwenna. Now, can you move your ass?”
It felt as though his brain cells had been randomized as he aimlessly stared at
the open door through which Xiomara had gone vanished. His mouth buckled as his
eyes turned glossy with confused tears. He was not sure how he should react to
this random and unbelievable revelation. He forced his feet to move—still
barefooted. “Wait.” He called, hurrying through the door. He stopped at the
maroon-carpeted hallway and gaped at the portraits that adorned the walls
before glancing to his right and left. Once he had spotted Xiomara, he raced
after her. “I don’t get it.” He blurted out with his heart hammering against
his chest.
“Not my problem.”
“Wait!” grabbing her arm, he forced her to a stop and made her face him.
“Adoptive mother? How do you expect me to respond to that?!”
“I don’t know.” She pulled her arm free and scowled. “I’m not exactly the one
who played a vital role in your messed up life, am I? But I will bring you to
someone who supposedly has. So please, save your questions for her.” With that,
she started back in her path.
“Who are you, then? You seem to know plenty about me.”
“Yeah, you’re apparently the hot topic now.”
“What is this Ten?”
“Oh god! Can you just shut up?”
“Easy for you to say. You’re not the one who was magically transported to an
orchard after being attacked by your roommate and teacher before randomly
waking up in a palace and now stuck with a strange rider chick.”
Xiomara scoffed. “Your chivalry is impeccable.”
“I’m only chivalrous to women.” Sehun muttered, glancing around the hallway
that was lit bright with chandeliers.
Halting to a stop, Xiomara faced Sehun with a familiar smirk. “How about to
your sister, then?”
Sehun’s eyes widened but before he could even open his mouth, Xiomara spun
around to meet the man who barged into the hallway. “Oh, I thought I smelled
something rotten.” He remarked with a smug smile etched on his lips. His jaw
was lined with thick stubble and his black hair resembled a moonless night. The
man looked almost as old as Kai. Sehun quickly shook the thought about Kai away
and focused on the guy. “Hi, I’m Mark.” He held his hand out like a civilized
man and Sehun without hesitancy, shook hands with him.
“Sehun.”
“I know. Xi, she’s waiting for him in her bedroom.” he turned his attention to
Xiomara.
“Yes, we can be there a lot faster if he didn’t slow us down with his
questions.” She snorted, shaking her head while subtly rolling her eyes.
“You’re a Flairer, too?” Sehun asked Mark despite himself.
“See. I told you.”
Mark nodded with a smile. “Yes. I think you two should hurry. We’ll have plenty
of time to catch up later.” He directed the last part towards Sehun. “Glad to
have another addition to our crazy family, Sehun.” with that, he shoved past
Xiomara and proceeded along the hallway.
“Okay, wait, sister?!” Sehun faced Xiomara who ignored him. “I think I’m going
half mad.”
“If you haven’t already, you sure will before you’ll see the day.” As she led
him down a spiral staircase, Sehun gawked at the black-clad men that swarmed
the hall below. All the eyes landed on him as he quietly descended the stairs
behind Xiomara. “Those are the henchmen you spoke of.”
“Minders?”
“Ah, so you do know.” Sehun averted his eyes to Xiomara’s leather boots as they
reached the bottom of the staircase. “Don’t mind them. Like I said, you’re the
hot stuff here.”
“Okay, what are Minders again?”
“Guards, basically.”
“For whom?”
“Gwenna and the Five.”
“The Five? There’s a Five now?”
“Oh Lord. Have some patience, big bro. All your doubts will be cleared.”
Sehun balled his hands into fists as they walked into another identical
hallway, but with different adornments on the wall. Nothing was making sense
and the more he thought he was nearing some answers, more questions grappled
him. His body began to shudder at every step he took. “Where is Chanyeol?”
“Resting.”
“Heva?”
“Also resting.”
“That Donghae dude?”
“Resting as well. You do realize you’ve been out for a night and a whole day,
right?”
“What?!”
“This way.” she pushed a door open and it led to another hallway. It really did
seem like a freaking palace.
“I wish you would just stop and answer my questions.”
“You know, I really liked you better when you were non-existent in my life.”
“Yeah well, ditto.” Sehun scanned the flowers that bordered the hallway before
settling his eyes on the black doors at the end. “Wait, please, stop.”
“What now?” she groaned, halting to turn and face Sehun.
“I’m completely lost right now. One minute I’m in FLAC, constructing the road
to my destiny and flirting with my teacher and the next, my whole life turns
upside down. All of you are talking about my mother and I have no idea how I’m
supposed to digest that. I don’t know where I am or any of the people here.
Would it kill you to enlighten me a little before you tour-guide me through
rest of this freaking place?!”
Xiomara let out an exasperated sigh, giving Sehun a sympathetic look. “The Ten.
Have you ever heard about them?”
“No… Actually yes. Dillan—”
“Yes, yes. So we’re the only Flairers in this world with the most destructive
Flairs. You’re one of them. The five of us here were also found as you were.
There’s me, Mark, Yixing, Jungkook, Donghae and now you here. The remaining
four are… not here. Clear?”
Sehun opened his mouth, but he wasn’t sure what to say.
“Look, you weren’t born to mundane parents, okay? You’re not here for no
reason. Now get in there.” she jerked her head to the doors. Sehun gulped the
lump in his throat as he slowly pushed the door open. Xiomara slammed the door
shut and the light was sucked out of the room. The only light that remained was
from the candles that was scattered all over the room. Sehun puffed out a heavy
breath, clenching and releasing his hands. He was far too tired to react
anymore. But his jaw slightly fell slacking when he met the woman who stood by
the wall of glass. Her long, wavy black hair reached to her thighs and she
stood tall and proud in her black gown, facing the glass.
“Hello, Sehun.” Her voice was carried to Sehun’s ears in the most graceful
manner and Sehun found himself floundering. When the woman turned around, her
haunting beauty struck Sehun dumb. She was definitely middle aged. But her
striking look still had the exuberance of her youth. Her red lips stretched
into a welcoming smile. “I know how strange this must seem to you.”
Sehun cleared his throat and fought the urge the plunge his hands into his
pants’ pockets. “You’ve no idea.”
Her pleasant smile stretched wider. “My sincerest apologies for this uncanny
meeting between mother and son.”
This time Sehun expressed his irritation by scoffing. “Yeah, what’s with that?”
he asked in the most vexed tone. The woman did not seem surprised. Instead, she
gracefully moved to the piano and rested a hand on top of it.
“I’m sorry.” She muttered as her smile faltered. “I never wished to lose you.”
“Look here. I’m aware of the danger I’m apparently in. But if it’s possible for
me to leave, I’d very much like to get back to my normal life.”
Gwenna passed another soft grin. “Do you think your life would ever be normal,
my dear Sehun? Sehun… It was not the name I chose for you.” she sighed.
“Can we skip the prologue? I’m done with riddles and puzzles and I’m honestly
very tired.”
“All right.” She took her seat on the piano bench and crossed her legs
dignifiedly. “What is your mind screaming about?”
“Why am I here?”
“For your own protection.”
“From the Snatchers?”
“From your father.”
That completely caught Sehun off guard. He helplessly stared at Gwenna for a
moment, tacitly begging for explanation. “My… father.” He whispered to himself
before rubbing his temples and let out a scoff. “This is just keeps getting
better and better.”
“Will you sit down?” she offered gently.
“No. Can you be more elaborative?”
“You’re the one who wanted to skip the prologue.” She flashed a lopsided grin
that reminded Sehun of Xiomara. “All right. Listen to me carefully. There were
four of us in the beginning, the rare Flairers. We were called the Recherchés.
Only three of us are alive now. It started some decades ago. This hunt for
these rare Flairers, these Recherchés. Now there are ten, all children of the
four. You and Xiomara are mine. The myths you must have heard about the
Snatchers are true. And they all work for your father. He is looking for every
last one the Ten.”
Sehun retreated to sit on the end of the king-sized bed before burying his face
in his palms.
“I had to hide you until even I couldn’t find you.” she continued. “I lost you
the day you were born.” And she spoke without any wavering in her voice. “I
didn’t know they’d find you before I would. I’m sorry.”
“Those three Recherchés.” Sehun asked, raising his head. “Who’re they?”
His mother did not take her eyes off Sehun’s. “Myself… Your father… And the
woman you must be well acquainted with. Dillan.”
“Right. Of course.” he pursed his lips, clenching his jaw.
“Dillan sides with your father. So do two of her sons.”
Sehun did not miss that as his eyes bulged out. “Wait, what? Kai and Kris—”
“Are two of the Ten. Mark is her second son and he had chosen the right side.
Donghae, Yixing and Jungkook were born to Allis, my dear friend who is no
longer alive.”
Sehun wondered if he could brick himself right now. “What next? You’re gonna
tell me my parents are actually some kind of humanoids?”
“No.” she frowned. “I’m very glad they took good care of you.”
“Good care of me?!” he jolted up to his feet. “Sure they did. When you let me
live like a fucking Freak!”
Her frown deepened but she did not make a reply for a minute. “I had no other
option, Sehun. Your father had gone power-mad. He wanted to rule all worlds.
And he can’t do that with just four of the Ten. At least with five, he has a
chance to go against us.” She carefully rose to her full height.
“Four.” Sehun shook his head. “Kai had me before. Why didn’t he just abduct me
or something? Dillan ran the entire school and I was there for weeks! Kris was
my freaking roommate! None of them made a move until the last minute!”
“It’s because you’re unstable. You have the most naturally disastrous Flair and
the ability to block out our Locators. You’ll be useless to him without your
Flair fully fledged and the school was your best shot since your father does
not have proper tutors. Unlike him, I can afford those tutors.”
Sehun found too many downsides to her reason. But he decided to forgo the
questions and proceeded onto another. “Okay, let’s just assume whatever that
you’re saying is true, how do I even believe that you’re my mother?”
“You don’t have to. But you will not leave this house unless I let you.”
“Wha… what?” he arched a brow.
“You will soon see reason. Now leave.”
“Whoa, okay. Hold on. I’m not leaving this room until you give me the answers I
need. Kai and Kris are not… Snatchers, then?”
“I presume not entirely. As I recall, Kris should be an atom manipulator?”
“And Kai has superhuman agility?”
“That and darkness dimension.”
“What?”
“Never mind that.”
“And the other two? Are they also siding with… him?”
“They’re his children.” She said with a lour and glanced out the glass into the
darkness. “Deevana and Shixun. My children.”
“Great. More siblings. Those people at the tower that night. Were they your
men?”
“My Minders, yes. I had sent them to seize Kris or Kai or both. Without them,
your father is crippled.”
“Okay. Give me a moment to take this in.” he sucked in a shaky breath and felt
his throat burn. “How do you even know that I’m your son?”
“Because I’ve seen Shixun. The only one who has seen him in years.”
“So?”
She finally lowered her head in despair. There was a sudden knock on the door
that silenced them both for a moment before Gwenna answered the knock. “Yes,
Jungkook?”
“I heard he’s up!” a boy burst into the room with his hair tousled and in an
oversized shirt. “Oh my god, hello!” he flashed Sehun a toothy smile.
“Good, now that you’re up, will you be so kind to help Sehun get some food. He
must be famished.” Gwenna said and the boy nodded with eagerness.
“Come on. Let’s ransack the kitchen. Xi is already waiting for you. I’m
Jungkook by the way.”
Sehun scowled at Gwenna before he stood up. “I’m not going—”
“We can still talk when you’re not starving anymore.” She assured him tiredly.
Sehun’s jaw tightened, but he didn’t bother to argue as he followed Jungkook
out of the room. He was indeed starving and food seemed like a much healthier
option right now than the bother himself with the anger. “That was some
conversation.” Xiomara commented when Sehun had exited. She was picking on her
nails, smirking while leaning against a wall.
“Were you eavesdropping?” Sehun asked, annoyed all over again.
“Only until the part where you were so curious about Kai and Kris.” Her smirk
broadened. “The notorious brothers.”
“Yeah, well.” Sehun rolled his jaw as he followed Xiomara and Jungkook. “I’d
love to break both of their jaws the next time I see them.”
“See! You’re fitting in already!”
“Is Kai even married to Dee?”
“Dee as in Deevana? Yeah, I heard that rumour a while ago.”
“Deevana… Fuck my life.”
“It’s already fucked up, big bro.”
“If you were born after me, do we have like different fathers?”
“Yes, you’re finally acting smart.” She led Sehun through another door.
“You’re so handsome.” Jungkook remarked with a sheepish grin and Sehun grimaced
at him.
***** Divulgence *****
“What on Kraken’s hell is all the hassle about at this hour?!” a ridiculously
deep female voice erupted in the darkness as Jungkook and Xiomara shepherded
Sehun into the unlit room.
“It’s just us, Mrs Gump.” Jungkook announced in the smallest proud voice before
Xiomara flicked the switch on the wall. It took Sehun a moment to adjust his
vision to the sudden brightness that surged through the opulent white-gold
kitchen. The fancy elaborateness of the kitchen robbed Sehun of his senses for
a second as he tried to not to gape at its extravagance. It had the biggest
refrigerator and the most lavish handiwork on the counter he had ever seen. But
the centre of attention was the unwarranted amount of purple and white
hydrangeas and pink lilies that embellished almost every corner of the kitchen.
Sehun did notice the lilies in the hallways as well, but this was simply
breath-taking. The only time he had seen this many hydrangeas and lilies
amassed was at Dee’s place. The scowl eased on his brows when he recalled how
benign Dee had been to him. She’s my sister. The thought replaced the scowl
with a frown. His entire life had been nothing but a lie and he still had not
figured out how to react to the fact that his parents weren’t even his parents.
“What do you brats need now?!” Sehun’s head turned in the direction of the
source of the grumpy voice and he was not one bit surprised to see a short,
plump woman walking out of a room within the kitchen. Her frizzy grey-streaked
orange hair stuck out in all angles like corkscrews and the wrinkles that
bordered her eyes suggested how old she was.
Xiomara let out a scoff as she grabbed a pear from the basket full of fruits on
the counter before taking her seat on one of the stools. “We’ve brought you a
victim, Mrs Gump. Feed him something. He looks like a lizard from the desert.”
That earned her a grimace and a glare from Sehun, but she only responded with a
smug shrug and a smirk.
“It’s not true. Don’t bother with her.” Jungkook loured at Xiomara before
patting Sehun’s stomach. Sehun retreated a step and Jungkook withdrew his hand
with a suppressed laughter. “He has abs, Xi.”
“Figures.” Xiomara scoffed again, taking a bite of the pear she was fiddling
with.
“Who is this new addition to your batch of baboons?” Mrs Gump grunted as she
made her way to the refrigerator.
“My half-brother.” She mumbled with her mouth half full. “Or should I say my
half-baboon?”
Mrs Gump paused for a minute with a slab of frozen ham in her hand and tossed
Sehun an annoyed glance. “Looks like your mother.” she snorted and resumed to
fish out some packed chicken breasts. “Where did it come from?”
Jungkook breathed out a chuckle as he descended on the stool next to Xiomara.
“From the academy.” He answered.
Mrs Gump did not make a reply as she turned to the stove. Shaking his head,
Sehun ran his fingers through his hair before facing Xiomara and Jungkook.
“Okay, let me get this straight. You… are my half-sister.” He pointed at
Xiomara.
“The one and only.”
“He is…” he shifted the finger to Jungkook.
“Donghae and Yixing’s brother.”
“I know who Donghae is. Who’s Yixing?”
Xiomara heaved a loud sigh. “Why don’t you take a seat, big bro? We have all
night to talk and I don’t think Jungkook is eager to go back to bed anytime
soon.”
Jungkook had his grinning lips pursed sheepishly as he shook his head. He
certainly found Sehun amusing.
Exhaling an exasperated breath, Sehun settled down on the counter’s stool.
“Where’s your father?” he asked Xiomara.
“Gone, dead, unimportant.” She replied nonchalantly. “He was just my mother’s
Champion who knocked her up.”
“Champion.” Sehun echoed. “Heva said something about that.”
“Sure she did.” A mischievous smile tugged at the corners of Xiomara’s lips.
The crackle of oil in the pan filled the silence. “Like you said, Minders are
just henchmen. But my mother’s Champions are like her personal bodyguards. Does
that make sense?”
“So…” Sehun scoffed. “Just fancy names for the obvious?”
“Yep.” She extended her lean arm to fetch an apple from the basket. Sehun was
aware of Jungkook staring at him with a Cheshire grin from the other side of
the counter but he decided to ignore him and keep his focus on Xiomara.
“Okay. You’re my half-sister. She… said something about Dee and another guy.”
Xiomara’s smirk faltered as she looked down to her apple. “Yeah. Deevana and
Shixun.”
“So they’re like my… brother and sister?”
“What else would they be?” she snapped, vexed. “I was born to Gwenna. You,
Deevana and Shixun are born to Gwenna and Faiion. Yixing, Donghae and that
little cute thing are Allis’. She’s no longer alive. Last but not least, Kris,
Kai and Mark. Dillan’s. I presume you know her.”
“Sure do.” He muttered, clenching his eyes for a moment. “Faiion. Is that my
father’s name?”
“Yes. Well, you know. He was one of the Four. You can tell why he was coveted
after by the rest of the three ladies.” Her smirk returned to her face.
“What?”
“Faiion loved Allis.” It was Mrs Gump who spoke with her back turned to the
rest as she worked with the food on the stove.
Both Xiomara and Jungkook remained silent. “What do you mean?” Sehun asked.
“Subplots are not important, big bro.” Xiomara remarked.
“It was your mother who seduced him.” Mrs Gump added and Sehun’s eyes slightly
widened.
“Okay.” He let out, rising to his feet. “This is all very OTT and I can’t
handle—” he paused himself when the plate was settled before him on the
counter. The corners of his mouth instantly drooled at meat.
“You don’t waste my food, boy.” Mrs Gump warned with her fists on the sides of
his wide waist. Sehun slowly sank back into his seat.
“Thank you… Mrs Gump.”
“You’re welcome. Eat up.” She sounded like the angriest person ever. “We need
some muscle in those scrawny arms.”
“Thanks.” He murmured again as Jungkook whispered something into Xiomara’s ear
before bursting into a laugh as Xiomara smiled. “So what am I supposed to do
here?”
“You train.” said his sister. “Until you have full control of your Flair.
Yixing, Mark and Donghae will be teaching you.”
“I will be watching.” Jungkook added in unnecessarily.
“What’s your Flair, then?” Sehun asked Jungkook.
“Poison generation.” The boy admitted quietly and for a moment, his face
withered into despondency.
“You generate poison?”
“Yes. From the body.” his cheeks were flushed pink. Sehun nodded as if he
acknowledged it and picked up the fork from the counter.
“Um… If Dee and this… Shixun are my siblings… why did they…”
“Why they chose Faiion?” Xiomara finished the question for him. “Well, I
suppose some of us are just born with darkness within us.”
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
“I’d like to talk to my parents.” He said as they headed towards the stairs.
Sehun was not sure how many hours had passed in the kitchen, but his stomach
was jam-packed with meat, asparagus and strawberry mousse. He wondered if the
sun had risen and only then did he realize that there weren’t any windows.
Jungkook had vanished a while ago and Xiomara seemed tired and somnolent.
“Why?” she asked, heavy-eyed.
“They’d be worried about me.”
“I doubt they even know that you’re gone.”
“They will find out soon enough.”
“Look. I don’t pull the strings here. And they’re not your parents. You’re home
now. Where you rightfully belong. So what’s the big deal?”
Sehun arched a brow at her inconsiderateness. “Have you always been this
insensitive?”
She shrugged. “They say I take after my mother.”
“Hey.” He grabbed hold of Xiomara’s arm and forced her to a stop. “What happens
if… Faiion gets his hands on all the… Ten?”
“What do you think?” she pulled her arm free. “He would use us one by one to
become the king of the world. And he has a trump card. Kai.”
Sehun’s heart skipped a beat at the mention of Kai’s name. “Why would you say
that?”
“Sehun, imagine how it would feel if you’re tossed into absolute nothingness
where you will be able to fear nothing but your own mortality. A dimension of
nothingness.” Her face was painted with a rage and a fear that Sehun did not
comprehend. “Now imagine a world of nothing but darkness until everyone goes
mad.”
Nothingness. Sehun could not bring himself to imagine himself in nothingness.
“That’s what Kai’s Flair does?”
“That’s what we’re all afraid of. It’s something that none of us can fight.”
She shook her head and proceeded toward the stairs.
“Where are we going now?” he inquired as they reached the top of the stairs.
The house was inconceivably huge and Sehun knew it would take him days to
commit the paths to his memory.
They came to an abrupt halt in the hallway and Sehun’s stomach finally felt at
ease as his eyes fell on Chanyeol and Heva walking in the opposite direction.
“Sehun.” Chanyeol exhaled and hurried to Sehun’s side at once. “How are you
feeling?”
“Fine. Extremely confused. Fucked up.” Sehun listed down, trying to not to
glower.
A faint smile formed on Chanyeol’s lips. “I meant physically. Teleportation
kinda gets you sick.”
“Teleportation?” Sehun’s eyebrows rose as his jaw fell slacking. “God. I just
found out that I’m apparently an important person. And you? What are you… I
mean you’re a Minder? A Champion? How did you… when?”
“I was the one who asked him.” Heva confessed beside him and only then did
Sehun look to her before his gaze fell on Xiomara who was staring at Heva.
“Sehun…” Chanyeol sighed. “I honestly didn’t know you were Gwenna’s son. And I
know this is hard for you. But…” he laid a hand on Sehun’s shoulder. “I will
always be there for you.”
Sehun nodded, lowering his head. “I just need to… take a breather. This is all
too much for me to even believe.”
Frowning, Chanyeol slid his hand down Sehun’s arm and curled it around his
elbow. “Xi, I’ll take him to his room.”
“Right. Sure.” she rolled her eyes and Sehun did not miss the scowl that she
threw Heva before she shoved past them and walked away.
“I’ll see you later in the range, Heva.” Chanyeol blurted out before he yanked
Sehun to walk.
“So you never knew Kai and Kris were…”
“No.” Chanyeol shook his head as his arm snaked around Sehun’s shoulder as if
to comfort him. “They were… their minds were sometimes impenetrable and they
only let me see what they wanted me to see. It takes a great effort to master
something like that.” His frown deepened.
“How did you become a… Champion? How did you even know this people in the first
place?”
“I started to hang out with Heva and we went to the Sunless Market one night
and…” he trailed off, fixing his eyes on Sehun’s. “You still look exhausted.”
“Not really.”
Chanyeol pulled him to a stop before a door. “This is your room.”
“You mean the royal chamber.”
“Well, we could argue that you are somewhat royalty.”
“I rather not.” He sighed. “What’s gonna happen when I wake up?” He asked with
a hand on the doorknob.
“You’ll meet more new people. Know more things about yourself.” Chanyeol slowly
raised a hand and enveloped it over Sehun’s. Shuddering at Chanyeol’s warm
fingers draped over his cold ones, Sehun glanced up to him with uncertainty. “I
really am sorry.”
“Don’t be. It wasn’t your fault. If anything, I should be thanking you for
saving me. I should… get more sleep.” He withdrew his hand from the doorknob.
“Before I face more shit in the morning.”
“Okay.” Chanyeol pursed his lips and let his hand fall to his side.
***** New Look *****
The almost primordial casement window poured stripes of radiant sunlight into
the room, which were soaked by the maroon carpet that complemented Sehun’s
ruddy complexion. Scanning the window, he digested the fact that it had no
bolt, no lath, no way to open it. “No way to escape,” He muttered to himself,
sliding his hands into the back pockets of the ripped jeans. He was not sure if
it were Xiomara who had stocked the wardrobe in the room with clothes that
would suit a street gangster, but not Sehun. He opted to stay in the same t-
shirt from last night than wear anything that the wardrobe held. Most of it
were studded with faux diamonds! But he traded the sweatpants from last night
for a pair of black ripped jeans. “Shit.” He cursed, crossing his arms over his
chest and glared through the window grill. Within the boundaries of his vision,
Sehun was only able to see trees. The orchard could be a buffer zone. But to
keep what out? Faiion? The Four? He suffered a shortage of breath for a minute.
What was going on in his life? He had been just a boy, a Freak who could never
fit in anywhere. But now, he was some catastrophic Flairer who was part of a
much bigger cataclysm and was apparently the son of the two most influential
Flairers of all time—the Recherchés? Sehun dropped his hands back to his sides
before clenching them into fists. He was having a hard time processing
everything and he certainly could not swallow anything that had happened last
night. Only a couple of days back, he was living his pipe dream. Now he was
imprisoned in a freaking palace or mansion or whatever the hell it was and was
met with a family he never knew existed a day ago. The worst thing was that he
felt numb—too numb and unresponsive when he thought about the fact that his
entire life, his family had been nothing but a carelessly constructed scheme by
a woman who had abandoned him. He clutched and released his fists. He was too
old to cry. He was too young to accept all of this with nothing but optimism.
He was too tired to stay mad.
“Do you not have any plans to come out of the room?” Xiomara loudly announced
her arrival as she burst into the room, banging the door open. Exhaling
exasperatedly, Sehun turned to meet his supposedly half-sister.
“Actually, no, I don’t,” he ran his fingers through his hair and plunged his
hands into the pockets. “One moment I’m in my dream academy, building a future
for myself and the next I’m here, meeting my actual mother for the first time
and I also learn that I have brothers and sisters. So, no. I don’t want to
leave this royal bloody chamber unless that woman is letting me leave this
place.”
Xiomara’s brows rose and she crossed her arms. Unlike last night, she was clad
in an oversized t-shirt with ragged holes revealing many parts of her body. Her
ankle boots possibly made her two inches taller. Her long silver hair was still
tied in a high ponytail. Sehun wanted to ask if she could throw on something
more appropriate, but then he realized he had only met her last night and if he
were to comment on her clothing, he was going to sound like a creepy older
brother. Sehun certainly did not want the brotherly instincts to kick in just
yet. “Whoa. Who ruffled your feathers so early in the morning?”
“I want to leave.”
“That’s not an option anymore and you know that, so stop whining,” she flumped
onto the foot of the bed and crossed her legs, leaning back with her hands
pressed into the mattress behind her. Throwing her head back, she made a low
guttural noise. “I understand that it must be difficult for you to accept all
this—”
“Oh, really?” he scoffed, shaking his head.
“Hey. You’re not the only one who doesn’t have a proper home, okay? We’ve all
been there.”
“Uh huh. So what’s your story, then?”
He was not actually expecting a serious reply from Xiomara, but he received one
nevertheless. “You do realize that you’re not only Gwenna’s first son, but also
Faiion’s first son, right? You, Deevana and Shixun are the strongest of the
Ten. Do you what it means to the rest of us? We’re runts. And… I was the only
one who was the end result of a disgusting affair and a one-night stand. What
does that make me?”
Sehun licked his lips and rubbed his forehead. “I… I didn’t…”
“Yeah,” she hopped back onto the floor. “Listen. There’s a reason why Gwenna
had to give you away and hide you. You’re her only trump card.”
Lowering his head, Sehun heaved a deep sigh. “What is she planning to do with
me?”
“Fledge your powers first. Then crown you as…” she trailed off, eyeing Sehun
from top to toe.
“What? Crownme as?”
“As the first Recherché.”
“What about the rest?”
“Not all of the Ten will be Recherchés, big bro. It’ll be the three of you, the
strongest ones who will lead us.”
“Whoa… time out. Who the fuck said I want to be a Recherché? Oh, my god. I
don’t want any of this!”
“You don’t see it, do you?” she let out a humourless chuckle. “You don’thave a
choice. This is who you are. You need to stop thinking that you’re just a
normal Flairer who can lead a normal Flairer’s life. You were born to be one of
the Ten and this is who you really are, not something you’re forced to be.
Unless you stand on our side, we’re all doomed. Especially with two of the most
catastrophic Flairers against us. And then there’s Kai.”
Sehun tried to restrain himself from shuddering when he heard the name, but
miserably failed. “Okay,” he let out, scratching the back of his neck. “Okay.
I’m not going to snap or flip the table. What should I do now?”
“Well,” Xiomara edged closer and pressed her palms to Sehun’s chest before she
gave it a playfully clap. “You could come with me obediently so that I can
introduce you to the others.”
“I honestly don’t want to.” So he was not just important. Apparently, he was
about to become a leader. Could this get any better?
 
 
 
It was like an intricate plan of a building that he could never sort out. The
maroon carpet along the hallways, the similar portraits and vases, the
hydrangeas and lilies, all made him feel like he was walking in circles. “So…
how old are you?” he asked to spark up a conversation with Xiomara.
“Why didn’t you wear the clothes I got for you?”
“Oh, so it was you. Do I seriously look like the rockstar or rapstar material
to you?”
He noticed the faint smirk that tugged at Xiomara’s lips. “I just thought your
sense of style could use some spunk.”
“What’s wrong with my sense of style?”
“Have you ever seen your haircut?”
“What’s wrong with my haircut?”
Xiomara came to an abrupt halt as her jaw went slacking, gaping at Sehun.
“What?” he inquired, wide-eyed.
“I have the most perfect idea. I’m going to give you a makeover.”
“For your information, I am completely satisfied with how I look. I don’t need
a makeover.”
“Yes, you don’t,” Jungkook’s voice boomed into the hallway and the boy hurried
to Sehun’s side with a toothy grin plastered on his face. “He looks perfect.”
He shot at Xiomara.
“Of course, you’d say that. You’re his hardcore fanboy.” she snorted.
“I’m not!” Jungkook rasped and let out a nervous laughter.
“I’m not kidding, though. A little bit of skin-tight leather, a jacket with
spikes, stylish haircut, and damn, you’ll pull off the look.”
“I’m gonna pass your offer, Xiomara.” Sehun said firmly before brushing past
her. Groaning, Xiomara caught up to him and Jungkook took Sehun’s other side,
still grinning sheepishly.
Upon reaching the ballroom, they came to a standstill before Heva, Donghae and
Chanyeol. “Sehun,” Chanyeol gasped and tore himself from the door. “How are
you?” he clasped a hand to Sehun’s shoulder, close to his collarbone. “How do
you feel?”
Sehun nodded and slyly shrugged Chanyeol’s hand off his shoulder. His eyes
landed on Donghae who had his arms crossed over his chest, glowering at Sehun.
“You ready to go in and meet the others?” Donghae asked with a cocky smirk. The
man was gorgeous, Sehun would admit that.
“Is this like a conference or a colloquium or something? Do I need to say
something?” Sehun’s question apparently was funny because it received a string
of chuckles from everyone.
“I think you’ll be safe if you don’t open your mouth at all.”
“Hey, Donghae. There’s no need to be an ass.” Xiomara snapped.
Rolling his eyes, Donghae pushed the door open and disappeared into the
ballroom before Jungkook hurried after him. “Don’t worry, Sehun. It’s just Mark
and Yixing. They’re… way nicer than Donghae, trust me,” Chanyeol assured him
with a gentle smile that could soothe Sehun under any circumstance. “Come on.”
With a hand pressed to the small of Sehun’s back, Chanyeol ushered him into the
ballroom. Sehun only made a short eye-contact with Heva who looked unbelievably
exhausted. Her eyes were puffy and clearly spoke of fatigue. But as he entered
the room, he noticed Xiomara completely ignoring Heva as she shoved past her.
Mark, whom Sehun had met last night, was seated on the piano bench. Another man
stood by the curtained wall and Sehun sucked in a shaky breath when the man
looked up to meet Sehun’s gaze. Yixing. Donghae leaned his back against the
piano with his hands stuck in his pants’ pockets. “So, this is Sehun,” Yixing
chimed with a smug smile before stepping forward with an extended hand. “Hey.
Yixing.”
“Sehun.” he took Yixing’s hand and cringed a little when Yixing squeezed it
briefly.
“I knew you had charisma. But boy, you have the looks. No wonder Donghae feels
so threatened!”
“What doesn’t Donghae feel threatened about?” Mark countered.
“His giant dick?”
Sehun’s eyes immediately darted to Xiomara who looked nonchalant as ever. “Oh,
don’t worry about her,” Yixing said and Sehun averted his gaze back to him. “Xi
is just as manly as we are.”
“Man with boobs? Definitely.” Donghae commented with a complimentary scoff.
“At least I’m a man.” Xiomara retorted. When Donghae lurched forward towards
Xiomara, Jungkook held him back.
“Okay, banters aside. We’re happy to finally have you here, Sehun,” said
Yixing. “I can’t stress enough about how long we’ve been waiting for this
moment.”
“This moment?” Sehun questioned, vacantly blinking his eyes. “Finally… to meet
me?”
“Finally to have a pupil to bully again!” Mark cried, jolting up to his feet.
“What?” he desperately looked to Chanyeol who was surprisingly quiet.
“Yixing, Donghae and I will be teaching you to master your Flair.” said Mark.
Kai’s brother. He was Kai’s brother. Sehun licked his lips.
“Donghae, too?”
A roar of laughter clamoured in the ballroom and Donghae smugly beamed. “Don’t
worry. He’ll be a far better teacher than those fools you called teachers in
FLAC.” Xiomara added.
“But today, I guess we’ll let you cruise around the chateau and get yourself
used to this place.” Yixing said, clapping a hand to Sehun’s shoulder. “Feel at
home, Sehun. We’re all your brothers. And that includes, Xi.”
“Ha ha. Fuck you.” Xiomara hissed, sticking her middle finger out. She kept her
finger stuck out but her eyes immediately followed Heva when the girl walked
into the ballroom. “But I’m gonna give him a haircut.”
“Ooh.” Yixing cooed. “Yeah, he looks like he could use that favour.”
Sehun unconsciously ran a hand through his hair. “It looks fine… to me.”
 
 
 
Xiomara had her way. Sehun did not have the chance to cruise around the house
as Yixing had suggested. Instead, he was trapped in Xiomara’s room with
Jungkook for the entire day. The forever locked window poured in some of the
dusk’s velvety light from outside, glorifying the sunset. “So you, Donghae, and
Yixing were actually born with… Gwenna around?” Sehun asked, trying to keep
himself distracted from the mirror so that he can avoid his own reflection.
Xiomara had him wrapped in a huge towel and, a comb and a pair of scissors
stuck in his hair. He can only hope that she wouldn’t leave him bald. But he
contemplated it. He could use a new look. However, leaving the fate of his hair
in Xiomara’s hands was a little reckless.
“Yes,” Jungkook muttered, sitting with his legs folded on Xiomara’s bed. Her
room resembled her personality. It was jam-packed with things that Sehun could
not even mentally conceive. “Allis was Gwenna’s best friend.”
“But the cook said—”
“They were on good terms until Gwenna chose to steal her man.” Xiomara snorted,
chopping off another clump of Sehun’s hair.
“So, Allis moved on, too, right? Considering the fact that she has kids about
my age.”
“Oh, she moved on fast, all right. Faiion didn’t. Stop moving.”
Jungkook sighed.
“Isn’t there an easier way. Like for us all to be friends.” asked Sehun.
“Of course. let’s bring them a basket of cupcakes and knock on their door, and
be like ‘hey, dad. We’re here to be friends with you!’ I’m not sure that’d
work.”
Sehun lowered his eyes and titled his head as Xiomara trimmed a side of his
head. “Have you ever tried that?”
Everything fell into silence and Xiomara’s hands froze in his hair. Sehun
perked his head. “I was kidding. That would never work. They’re not the kind to
listen.”
“You don’t know that for sure!” Sehun spun around in his chair and gasped at
his half-sister. “Maybe they’re thinking that we’re not the kind to talk!”
Jungkook and Xiomara exchanged a dubious glance. “I’m pretty sure I trimmed
your hair. Not your brain.”
Groaning, Sehun ripped the towel off his body and rose from the chair. “Do you
know where they live?”
“Sehun—”
He immediately turned to Jungkook. “Do you?”
Jungkook blinked rapidly with parted lips. “Uh…”
“Great! Come on. Let’s pay them a visit.” Sehun grabbed Xiomara’s hand. “I know
that you know a way out.”
“You’ve gone barking mad.” She pulled her hand free. “Even if we did manage to
get you out of here, what’s the guarantee you won’t run away and for crying out
loud, why am I even considering this because the whole point of you being
brought here is to keep you safe from Faiion? And you want to knock on his door
and basically offer yourself on a silver platter?!”
“Firstly, I won’t run away. Even if I did, you have a teleporter to get me
back. Secondly, I won’t run away because I have nowhere else to go. Thirdly,
I’m not going to meet Faiion. I want to see Dee, who seems like the most
practical Flairer I’ve come across. And she’s my sister.”
“Ouch.” Xiomara crossed her slender arms over her chest.
“This is a huge gamble. And we’ll get into so much trouble.” Jungkook said,
jumping off the bed.
“I’ll come back. I promise.” Sehun stated, whole-heartedly. “I won’t let you
two get into trouble. I won’t run away. Guys, we can avoid a war if both
parties could just see reason. What do you say?”
Xiomara immediately shook her head.
“Fine. If you’re not going to help me, then I will find my own way out, I’ll
even throw a cyclone in here to demolish this place and free myself. I’ll go on
my own.”
“Ah.” Both Xiomara and Jungkook chimed together.
“What?”
“We see that you have Faiion’s stubbornness.” Xiomara commented. Sehun shook
his head.
“Come on, guys.”
“Xi… he’s gonna do it on his own.” Jungkook murmured.
“Then we’ll tell Gwenna.” Xiomara said.
“Oh, I think the stubbornness comes from our mother.” Sehun scoffed. “Xiom… Xi,
you’re not her henchwoman, for godsake. You can make choices on your own,
foryour own.”
It took Xiomara a moment to contemplate and her worrisome eyes kept bouncing
from Jungkook to Sehun. And then she sighed, “Okay, fine. But we will only go
there to see Dee. If we don’t find her, we come back immediately.”
Sehun tossed the towel aside. “Deal.”
“You look like a porcupine by the way. Can I at least finish cutting your
hair?”
“We can worry about my appearance when we come back.”
“Ifwe come back.” Jungkook sniggered.
***** The Restrainer *****
The spring moon shed its brilliant light and bleached the uncovered parts of
the soil of the woods they coursed through—though not without hardship. Sehun
had no real idea if they were even walking in the right direction to wherever
Faiion lived or if Xiomara were leading them in the right path or where on
earth he was. But she had gotten Sehun out of the mansion, palace or whatever
the house was, although she had him blindfolded for more than an hour. She had
only allowed Sehun his sight back when they were nowhere near the house and
were surrounded by the dense forest. Which forest, Sehun had no clue of.  “Is
this really necessary?” he jerked his tied hands into Xiomara’s face and
scoffed at his half-sister’s arrogant smirk.
“It’s Restrainer,” she said as if Sehun was supposed to know whatever the hell
it meant. She noticed the bafflement sheening in Sehun’s eyes and decided to
completely ignore it with a wider smug smile as she hurried ahead of him. Sehun
scanned the otherworldly black belt around his wrists.
“What the heck is a Restrainer?” he hissed at Jungkook who was treading on his
footsteps behind.
“Oh, you don’t know what that is?” he eyed the belt around Sehun’s wrists.
“No? I thought it was just one of her gothic accessories.”
Xiomara chuckled out a soft breath before him. “Who even uses the word gothic
anymore? Goodness, big brother, you’re in a far worse shape than I thought
you’d be.”
Sehun frowned. “Okay, Miss Style Expert. Care to tell me what the hell this
Restrainer is?”
“It’s for Flairers who use their body parts to initiate and manipulate their
Flair.”
“What?”
Jungkook laughed beside him and Sehun glared at him before tossing the glare to
Xiomara whose struts were becoming cockier and cockier. She turned her head
halfway around, but kept walking forward past the trees. “You’re a helpless
creature.”
“Ha ha.” He glanced around him when he heard a vague ruffling noise. He averted
his attention back to Jungkook who was clinging on his arm.
“A Restrainer prevents the Flairer from using their powers,” the boy explained,
squeezing Sehun’s arm. “You smell nice, Sehun.”
“Thank you, but do you seriously not trust me?!” he snapped at Xiomara.
“Not a chance.” Xiomara sniggered. Her silver hair oscillated excitedly as she
strutted in her knee high boots.
“Wow. I appreciate your candour.”
Both Jungkook and Xiomara’s laughter boomed and reverberated all over the
forest, filling the silent night air with their exhilaration and amusement.
“Did I say something funny again?” Sehun asked in a low voice.
“Candour!” Xiomara guffawed. “Are you even listening to yourself?! First, the
ugly retro hair. Now this!” she continued to laugh as Jungkook supplemented her
amusement. “Did you jump out of a horrible production of BBC?”
Swallowing, Sehun pursed his lips. He followed them in silence as they
continued to take jibes at him. So this was how it felt to have siblings.
“We have to go back and fix his hair quick,” said Jungkook, glancing up to
Sehun’s hair.
Frowning deeper, Sehun asked, “Is it that bad?”
“It’s chaotic.” He laughed and almost choked before he coughed.
Sehun knew he was pouting in dismay as he quickly raised his tied hands to his
hair to neaten it. “How short is it?!” he gasped.
Xiomara came to a halt and fell back to take his side. “It would have been good
if you hadn’t been so stubborn. It’s not that short. Don’t worry. It’s still
gazillion times better than your Meg Ryan hair.”
“Oh, my god.”
“Now we just need some leather pants for that ass,” Sehun jumped forward when
Xiomara slapped his butt. He couldn’t help but gape at her. “Whoa, sorry? Did I
stain your virginity?” she smirked and started ahead of him again.
“He’s a virgin?!” Jungkook rasped.
“No! Cut it out! Just stop talking about how old school I am!” Sehun begged
desperately and they burst into another roaring laughter. Sehun could feel hot
blood filling his cheeks and pounding in his ears.
“You’re not old school, big bro,” Xiomara snorted. “You’re just a nerd.”
“No. Actually, I grew up, locked in my room. So I’m sorry if I’m a little
Freakish for you superior Flairers.” He unconsciously snapped and overtook them
as they came to a standstill. It was only after a minute did he realize they
had come to a complete halt and were frowning at him. “What? What did I say
now?”
“Um…” Xiomara droned, pursing her lips. “We didn’t mean to—”
“Don’t worry about it. Can we just keep going?” he started walking again.
“Uh—”
“It’s okay, guys. I forgive you.”
“No, it’s this way.”
Sehun came to a jerky stop and turned on his heel. Xiomara was obviously
stifling a laugh as he walked back to her. “Having fun?”
“Yes.” She chuckled. “Sorry.”
“I haven’t seen her laugh this much in a while.” Jungkook admitted and Sehun
raised his eyebrows.
“Okay, that’s enough. March. We need to be back before anyone finds out we’re
gone,” Xiomara started up the hill. “What if Deevana isn’t there?”
Sehun bit his lip. “I haven’t really thought about a what if situation.”
Xiomara glanced back with a grimace. “You’re kidding me, right?”
“It’ll be a good idea to just know what our enemy is surrounded with. But what
about our brother? Shifun.”
“Shixun,” Xiomara corrected him. “I doubt he’ll be helpful. I heard he’s the
cockiest bitch in the world of Flairers.”
“Oh,” he looked down to his Restrainer. “This Restrainer should work on Kris as
well, right?”
“Yes. He uses his hands to initiate his Flair.”
“What about Kai?”
“His superhuman agility? Yes. Although we’ll probably need a bunch of
Restrainers to restrain his Flairs. But he uses his mind when it comes to the
Darkness Dimension.”
“So… isn’t there a loop hole for that?”
“No. That’s why Kai is almost as dangerous as Faiion. Some of us think he’ll
crown Kai as his Recherché along with Shixun and Deevana.”
“And together with me, we’ll be the Four?”
“If you don’t end up killing each other, yes.”
Sehun licked his lips with furrowed brows as he climbed up the hill. If they’ll
make the Four, then it was them that Sehun needed on his side.
“Get down!” Xiomara hissed and dropped to the ground, yanking Sehun down with
her by his shirt. Sehun collapsed to the ground with a thud and groaned at his
sister.
“If you’re teaching me how to be cool, let me teach you how to be a girl!” He
hissed under his breath before he realized what he had just said. “I realized
what I said as soon as I had said it. Let it go.” He whispered and Xiomara
pressed her mouth to her arm to muffle her laughter. Jungkook crawled to
Sehun’s side, pursing his grinning lips. Jesus Christ. I am never going to hear
the end of this.
“Look,” Xiomara jerked her chin towards the other side of the hill. “That’s
their citadel.”
Sehun followed her gaze and his jaw fell slacking when his eyes landed on the
fortress below them. It was almost as huge as a castle. “Fuck.”
“Whoa, big brother. Do you need to holy water to wash your mouth later or would
you just cry yourself to sleep?”
Sehun grimaced at her. “How are we going to infiltrate that?”
“I don’t know. This was your idea.”
“Donghae could help us.” Jungkook suggested.
“Donghae can only teleport to places he’s been too, smartass. I seriously doubt
he’s been to specifically Deevana’s bedroom.”
“There are no guards.” Sehun noted.
“Faiion’s cocky enough to not to keep Champions and Minders. He keeps
Snatchers. He just needs to keep the Pootles out.”
“What should we do now?”
“Now you know it’s impossible to just knock on your father’s door. Let’s go
back.”
“We can’t leave without doing anything.”
“Yes. How about I rip your heads off and hang them on these branches?”
The foreign voice startled all three of them and they jolted to their feet at
once. Sehun felt the air being knocked out of his lungs as he spun around to
meet Kai standing right before his eyes, sporting a leather jacket. “Fuck.”
Xiomara breathed out.
“Lift your arm and I’ll tear it off your body,” Kai warned Xiomara, pointing
his forefinger at her, wearing a smug and nonchalant look with an eyebrow
cocked. Sehun noticed Xiomara eyeing the Restrainer around his wrists through
her peripheral vision. Kai’s eyes rose to Sehun’s hair, but his expression
remained stoic. “Is that styling gel in your hair or your mother’s lube?” he
scoffed and Sehun’s ears grew hot. He pulled his hands out of his pants’
pockets and closed the distance between them. Sehun gulped, glancing to Xiomara
who looked just as helpless, but if she was scared, she definitely did not
exhibit her fear. “I can’t decide if you’re idiots or complete losers.”
Yep, Kai was just Kai.
“Kai?!” another voice echoed from afar. Kai turned his head toward the source
of the call before facing them again.
“Get the fuck out of here,” He hissed under his breath. None of them turned a
hair as they stared at him. “Which part of get the fuck out of here don’t you
dumbass get?” he asked quietly and Xiomara moved at once. She jolted past Sehun
and grabbed Jungkook’s arm as she ran down the hill. Sehun—still
gaping—continued to stare at Kai. “Do you need a special announcement?” he
snapped.
“Kai!” the voice cried again.
“Kai…” Sehun exhaled, blinking vacantly.
“Just know you’re on the wrong side, Sehun. You won’t believe me now. But
you’ll see it for yourself soon enough.”
Panting a little, Sehun started to move and that was when Kai caught hold of
his arm. That instant, Kai’s eyes and glare were ferocious and ridiculously
passionate. He titled his head to the side, just a little, as his gaze fell on
Sehun’s parted lips. He stared at the lips for a moment as his own lips parted.
Sehun felt his heart stop for a second when Kai’s upper lip ghosted over his
bottom lip, his breath grazing the tip of Sehun’s tongue, but before their lips
could even touch, Kai released his arm and turned on his heel. “Fix your damn
hair. You look like a retarded blowfish. I’m coming, Shixun!” he called back as
he broke into a jog before disappearing into the denser woods.
***** Commencement *****
There was a preternatural presence and a warm weight shifting on the mattress.
He awoke without warning and with silent composure. His eyes took in the
brilliant rays of morning sunlight and adjusted themselves accordingly. The sun
bathed the mattress with its tender warmth and Sehun felt his legs cosily toss
around under the duvet, luxuriating in the comforting heat and snugness.
“Good morning.”
As soon as the voice registered to Sehun’s brain, he sprung up like a cat in
ice-cold water with his eyes flashing wide open. “What are you doing in my
bed?!” he cried at Jungkook who was comfortably settled on the bed, next to him
with his head propped in his hand.
“Oh, I’m really sorry,” Jungkook sat up with a faint frown. “I didn’t mean to
startle you.”
Drawing in a long, trembling breath, Sehun ran a hand through his hair,
glancing to Jungkook. “Do you people here love watching others sleep or what?”
“Nah,” he hugged his knees to his chest, grinning at Sehun. “It’s just… you. Xi
said that you’re charming when you’re sleeping.”
Sehun cocked a brow. “Charming? Really? She said that?”
“Well, not in those exact words,” Jungkook shrugged. “I mean she did say you
looked pretty and you snored like a girl.”
“Okay, now that’s offensive. I don’t snore.”
Jungkook pursed his lips and deliberately looked out the inaccessible window
without a reply.
“I snore?!” Sehun rasped, blinking hard.
“Well, not like—”
Shaking his head with a gaping mouth, Sehun slid off the bed and rose to his
feet. “Wait… Did she say I snore like a girl?”
Licking his lips, Jungkook looked away. “Um, Sehun. You should get ready. Mark,
Donghae and Yixing don’t really like to wait.”
“Oh, right,” he sighed, scratching the back of his head and gazed to the window
that oozed radiant sunshine. “When did we come back last night?” he inquired,
walking over to the mirror. Although he barely recalled collapsing in his bed,
he clearly remembered Kai’s lips brushing his own. Even the thought of it
rendered Sehun flustered and his heart painfully skipped a beat every time he
replayed the kiss in his mind—the kiss which totally happened spontaneously
back in FLAC. He had tried so hard to not to think about Kai or the kiss or any
of the moments he had shared with that guy. But after last night, after Kai had
let them go scot-free, Sehun could not help but wonder what Kai’s stance in
this conflict was. He warned Sehun that he had taken the wrong side. He did not
capture him. In fact, to come to think of it, even back at FLAC, it was not Kai
who took the first step to seize Sehun or anything. It was Kris who had become
hostile. Now that Sehun had begun to give some thoughts to it, Kai had always
been protecting him despite having multiple chances laid at his doorstep. For
instance, that time at Alma’s lodge.
Sehun’s jaw dropped slacking before his own reflection. “Oh, my god.”
“It’s not that bad,” Jungkook chimed. “Xi will fix it.”
“No, not the hair,” he ruffled his hair, which stuck out in every angle like he
walked through a hurricane. “I snore?” he groaned, grimacing hard at his own
reflection. He had slept at Alma’s lodge with Kai in the same room. Jesus
Christ. He snored! His reputation was deeply stained. First, he was seen as a
total princess. Then he snored. Now Kai just had to see him in his ridiculous
half-assed haircut.
“Sehun, it isn’t that bad either. You snore like… like a cat’s purring.”
Sehun cast him a disgusted look. “That does not make me feel any better,”
Taking the shirt off, he dragged his palm down his sternum and abs. “Last
night…” he turned to face Jungkook who was staring at his stomach and Sehun
arched an eyebrow at him.
“I really wanna be like you.” the boy breathed out in awe.
“Okay, focus. Last night, why did Kai let us go?”
Jungkook sat up on the edge of the bed. “I honestly don’t know. Xi is just as
baffled,” he whispered out. “We actually thought there’s a catch, but… he just
let us… go.”
“You think you guys might have the wrong ideas about them now?”
“What do you mean?”
Heaving a loud sigh, Sehun dragged his feet across the fancy carpet to the
wardrobe. “I mean what if… all these conflicts are due to some
miscommunication? To them, we’re the bad guys. Think about it, Jungkook.
Neither Kris nor Kai had tried to hurt me. They could have. Maybe they were
just protecting me.”
“From whom?”
“From…” he bit his lip, grunting at the tight, black and grey t-shirts. “I
don’t know. From… Gwenna?” he muttered, pulling out a black t-shirt and a black
leather jacket with studs and spikes on the shoulders. Sehun mentally rolled
his eyes and decided to keep the black ripped jeans on.
“Are you… serious? Sehun, we’re the good guys.”
“Exactly,” he spun around to meet Jungkook’s bewildered expression. “That’s
what you think, right? What if they think they’re the good guys?”
“Of course they’re gonna think they’re the good guys. It doesn’t make it true,
though.”
Sighing, Sehun dropped his head. “You’re right. It’s not like you guys are
going to listen to the newbie anyway. Could you get Xiomara? I need her to do
something with my hair.”
“Oh, she’s… kinda busy.”
“What?”
“That’s why I’m here,” he beamed from ear to ear, jumping off the bed. “She’s
at the training range.”
“You’re kidding me, right? Do you know how… how awful it felt to meet Kai with
this freaking hair last night? It was like… like a hypodermic of adrenaline was
emptied into my carotid. I was his worst pupil. And he thinks I’m fragile.”
“I seriously hope you don’t say that part with Xi around.”
“Which part?”
“All of it.” he scoffed.
“Okay,” he raised his hand to scratch the back of his head and he did not miss
Jungkook staring at his flexed bicep. “I’m gonna go take a shower. Why don’t
you wait outside?”
“Yeah. Um… can I just in wait here?”
“No.”
“Okay.” Jungkook blurted out immediately and started for the door.
 
 
 
 
As soon as Sehun entered the ballroom, Jungkook bailed. He stopped at the
doorway, awestruck by the lively and exhilarating music of the piano that
filled the entire ballroom—its tempo flowing like water filling the gaps
between sand particles. The corners of Sehun’s lips automatically quirked into
a vague grin as Mark’s fingers bounced across the piano’s keys. He might have
been playing a number by Mozart, Sehun wasn’t sure. Chanyeol and Yixing were
bobbing their heads dramatically, leaning against the piano while Donghae
critically shook his head, picking on his cuticles, perched on the steps of the
podium at the front of the ballroom. Yixing burst into a screechy song and
Chanyeol chuckled beside him.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake, Yixing! You’re off-key!” Donghae yelled. Mark picked up
the pace of his playing as he shot Sehun a welcoming glance and smile. “My ears
are bleeding. Stop!” he laughed and hurled a penknife to Yixing. Sehun froze
completely when he realized it was a penknife as Yixing caught it like it was
just a stick thrown at him. On one hand, it was weird to hear Donghae laugh and
on the other, he was truly intimidated to train with these guys now. One moment
they were artistic people and the next, they were throwing knives at each
other?!
Sehun took a step back, but stopped when Chanyeol jogged up to him. “Did you
sleep well? I tried to look for you last night, but you weren’t in your room.”
He said, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Uh… Yeah. Xiomara was just showing me around the house.” Sehun partially lied.
Chanyeol grimaced at his hair. “I know. Wasn’t my idea.”
The music died out of the sudden and Mark rose from the bench. Sehun had to
refrain himself from staring at the man. Minus the thin beard and shoulder-
length black hair, Mark could look like an older version of Kai. “Is that
styling gel in your hair or—”
“Or my mother’s lube?” Sehun cut in and finished his question. Mark’s eyes
widened along with his smirk as if he looked amused and impressed.
“I was gonna say cat spit. But yes.” He laughed.
“Yeah, your brother said it.” Sehun muttered, peeling his leather jacket off.
“Ah. When he was teaching you?”
Sehun looked up at the taller man and blinked. “Yeah. Yeah,” he dropped the
jacket to the polished floor. “So, why are we practicing in here and not in
some training room?”
“Because you’re a rookie,” Donghae answered. “And an amateur.”
“What Donghae means is that this room is less… destructive.” Yixing amended
with a smug smile.
Sehun nodded. “Okay, I’m ready. What are we going to do?”
Mark stepped forward. “It’s very simple, Sehun. Sit down and meditate.”
“What?”
“No, I’m kidding. Okay, do you know that you can manipulate everything that is
related to climate and weather?”
“Yeah.”
“Did you know that you can control the degree of your Flair? Like for instance,
you can control the level of a tornado or maybe the voltage potential of a
lightning bolt. What you can’t control is what comes after. You blow a
duststorm in here, and you won’t be able to focus on the consequences that
follow. At least that’s what we know about Atmokinetic Flairers. You’re the
only one living. So… we’re gonna have to improvise as we go along. Now,” he
shifted to stand behind Sehun as Donghae exploded into swirls of black smoke
and disappeared before reappearing at the ballroom’s windows. They were
openable, Sehun noticed and took note. When he had opened them, he stood by
them, pinning Sehun with a judgey look. Yixing took his position before Sehun
with several feet distancing them. “You think you can make it snow just for
Yixing over there?”
Sehun blinked vacantly. “Just… on the spot?”
“Yes.” Mark, compared to Kai, was a far kinder teacher. Much more composed.
“I can try.” Sehun swallowed before he raised his hand. It had been some while
since he had initiated his Flair. He looked up at the ceiling and the
chandeliers, hoping not to make it snow in the entire ballroom. Sighing, he
fixed his eyes on Yixing who was sheepishly grinning at him. “Do you seriously
trust me with him? What if I kill him with heat wave instead?”
“Don’t worry about it. Yixing’s Flair is Reactive Evolution. He can basically
adapt to any environment and climate.”
“Yep, that’s why I’m always the bait, the decoy or the scapegoat,” Yixing
added. “Well, mostly every environment. Don’t make me go to any parties with
Donghae. I’ll snap.”
“That’s because you’re a goddamn softie,” Donghae retorted before he glanced to
Sehun. “But I think someone just beat you.”
“Focus, Sehun.” Mark breathed at Sehun’s nape.
Sehun had his hand lifted and fingers crooked. He let out a shaky breath,
swallowing hard.
“Why do I feel like he’s gonna burst out crying and run away from us?” Donghae
scoffed and Mark hissed at him.
“Shut up, Donghae. We don’t have all day. Go on, Sehun. Just do something to
Yixing.”
“Geez, Mark. I appreciate your undying concern for a fellow brother.” Yixing
remarked, grimacing at Mark.
“Well, technically speaking, you’re not my brother.” He shrugged.
“Yeah. An arrogant snotty princess and a cocky snob are your brothers.”
“Kris is not a snotty princess.”
“I was talking about Kai.”
“Let’s hope he doesn’t ever hear about this. Your butt wouldn’t look so cute
buried six feet under.”
“Aw, you think my butt’s cute?”
“Can we just get back to that clueless butt?!” Donghae snapped.
Sehun stifled a laugh and straightened up when he noticed Donghae’s glare.
“Okay. I can do this.” He muttered to himself and stretched his arm further. He
clogged his mind with concentration and within seconds, a gush of icy wind
surged into the ballroom through the windows and Yixing jerked forward as the
forceful wind slammed against his back.
“Whoa!” he grunted and Sehun dropped his hand at once.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry!”
“It’s okay,” Mark patted on his shoulder. “A for effort,” He smiled. “Sehun,
were you meaning to do that or… could you not make it snow?”
“Contrary to popular belief, I’m not the Ice Prince.” Sehun murmured, quite
dejected with his performance.
“Okay,” he clapped a hand to Sehun’s back. “That’s all right. Go get some rest.
Eat something.”
Sehun bowed his head at once and grabbed his jacket. He knew he’d want to get
out of there before Donghae said something discouraging. “There’s your mighty
Recherché.” Donghae snorted.
Dammit.
Sehun only realized Chanyeol had excused himself a while ago when he bumped
into his friend outside the ballroom. “How did it go?” he inquired with a
supportive beam plastered to his face.
Frowning, Sehun pulled the jacket on and started towards the stairs.
“I take it it didn’t go well.” Chanyeol sighed, treading on Sehun’s footsteps.
“No, Chanyeol. It didn’t. You just read my mind.”
“Hey,” he grabbed hold of Sehun’s hand and pulled him to a stop. Sighing
heavily, Sehun faced Chanyeol expressionlessly. “You’re the smartest person I
know. You can do this, okay?”
“Chanyeol, are you…” Sehun glanced around them before continuing. “What are you
doing here? You joined FLAC because you wanted to study. You’re here because of
me, aren’t you? You can’t go back because of me.”
“Don’t be silly, Sehun,” he smiled and raised a hand to Sehun’s face, but
dropped it before it even touched Sehun’s cheek. Then biting his lower lip,
Chanyeol averted his gaze. “Becoming a Champion for Gwenna is one of the best
things that’s happened to me. I finally matter, you know.”
“You’ve always mattered, Chanyeol.” Sehun sighed and spun around to descend the
staircase, but Chanyeol caught his elbow again and forced him to face him. You
just read my mind. You just read my mind. FUCK.
“Holy shit.” Chanyeol gasped and Sehun’s eyes bulged out.
“What? What?!”
“You fucking went to—”
“Shh, keep your voice down!” Sehun hissed, shoving Chanyeol back until the
latter was pinned against the wall. “I can explain.”
“Oh, you think you can?!” Chanyeol snarled, wide-eyed and jaw-dropped. “What
the hell, Sehun?!”
“Nothing happened, okay?! I’m back here, aren’t I?!” he whispered, fisting
Chanyeol’s shirt by the chest. His body was almost pressed against Chanyeol’s
and he could feel Chanyeol’s air rage. “Please, Chanyeol.”
“Do you have any idea what we went through to get you here?! And you just… you
fucking met Kai!”
“I said shut the hell up!” Sehun rasped, clutching Chanyeol’s collar now. “I’m
this close to shoving something down your throat, Chanyeol.”
“Is something wrong here?” a Minder inquired as he climbed up the stairs. Sehun
tore himself away from Chanyeol and cleared his throat.
“No,” he let out, pinning Chanyeol with a sidelong look. Please. Please, trust
me. I know what I’m doing, Chanyeol. I need you to trust me. Give me a chance.
Clenching his jaw, Chanyeol faced the Minder. “It’s fine. We’re just,” he
glanced to Sehun again. “Going to get breakfast.”
“All right,” the Minder turned to Sehun. “Madam Gwenna’s asking for you.”
“Oh, great. I wanted to talk to her anyway.” He breathed out a nervous chuckle.
How could he forget that Chanyeol could read his bloody mind?! Chanyeol caught
his arm again and Sehun sighed.
“We need to talk as well.” He said, monotonously.
Sehun glanced back to him and nodded curtly. “We do. Later.”
Chanyeol looked pissed beyond comprehension, but he released his grip on
Sehun’s arm before turning on his heel and stomped away with his hands plunged
into his pants’ pockets.
When he reached Gwenna’s room downstairs, he paused with his fist raised to
knock on the door. Could he trust Chanyeol with any of secrets? Well, it wasn’t
as if he could keep anything from that guy anyway. Kai had said that Sehun
could tune Chanyeol out, block all thoughts. But Sehun had no idea of how that
worked. Sucking in a brisk breath, he knocked on the door before entering.
Gwenna was sitting on the settee facing the window and orchard. Sehun cleared
his throat, but she didn’t respond immediately. Her hair flowed like a
waterfall past her waist as she stood up. “Good morning, Sehun.”
Nodding, Sehun looked away, muttering a ‘good morning’.
“That’s a wild hair.”
“Yeah, I haven’t heard the end of it.”
“How has it been?” she asked, smiling gently. “Xiomara told me that you’re
fitting in just well.”
“Fitting in would be an overstatement.” Sehun scoffed.
Gwenna’s smile remained unfaltering. “And have you started with your training?”
“I… suppose.”
“Good. Are they all being nice to you?”
“Almost all.” He shrugged.
“Hmm,” she droned and gracefully seated herself on the armrest of the settee.
“It is very important that you are prepared for your coronation.”
“Coronation?! Oh, god. Please tell me I’m not gonna be treated like a prince or
something.”
“Has someone told you about it?”
“Yeah. Xiomara did. I get crowned as a Recherché.”
“Yes. And it has to be on your 17th birthday.”
“That’s like in another three weeks. Why? Why so early?” he rasped.
“Because your… father could crown his Recherchés at any moment.”
“He hasn’t, has he? I mean who are his candidates?”
“Shixun and Deevana are. But… Kai or Kris could be one of them, too.” She
looked bothered as she rubbed her temples.
“Okay, time out… Gwenna. Can I just say something?”
“Of course.”
“Let’s just say,” he started, taking a step closer to his mother. “We try and
talk to them.”
“What do you mean?”
“Like a negotiation of some sort. What if you’re wrong about them?”
“I am not wrong about the fact that Faiion wants to rule all of this world,
Sehun.” she rose to her feet as her smile died.
“Yeah, how come I don’t buy a word of that?”
Gwenna blinked in surprise.
“Look. I will go through this… coronation thing. I’ll do whatever you say. I’ll
even stay without a fight. I’ll be this Recherché. I’ll… take on whatever duty.
But… under one condition,” he paused to catch his breath. “I want you to invite
Faiion and the others to my coronation.”
“Sehun—”
“Otherwise, you can just keep ruling by your own and I will keep trying to get
the hell out of here.”
Gwenna looked conflicted as she sank in the settee, burying her forehead in her
palms. Sehun clenched and released his fists, constantly gnawing on his lip.
When a moment had passed, Gwenna faced her son again. “Do you think this will
bode well for any of us?”
“I don’t know. Have you ever tried coming to terms with Faiion?”
“We’ve tried everything, Sehun.”
“Maybe that was just long ago!”
“Your father isn’t one to sit and talk.”
“Why do I have a feeling I get the stubbornness from you and not him?” Sehun
cocked a brow, sniggering a little.
Gwenna looked genuinely shocked now, if not appalled. Then she smirked. “You
really are our son,” she uttered under her breath. “But I’m afraid it can’t be
that simple. We cannot directly converse with Faiion and the others.”
“Well, there must be some sort of way. Third parties, maybe? Someone on the
fence who can help us broker a deal?”
“Sehun, I’m not sure this is a good idea.”
“You want me to take all of this seriously? Do you want me to accept that
you’re my mother? Then prove that you’re someone worth of it, Gwenna. We can
talk when you’re ready to agree to my terms.” With that he turned around.
“Wait. All right.”
Smiling to himself, Sehun lowered his head and hid his grin before facing his
mother again. “All right?”
It took Gwenna a moment to reply. “I’ll give it some consideration. Given that
you fulfil your duties.”
“Cross my heart and hope to die,” He beamed. “How are you going to invite them,
then?”
“Well, as you’ve suggested, we can’t deal with them directly. I will have to
have the minister over. And hopefully, he’ll be convinced that we are not
looking for a war by inviting Faiion here.”
“Not just Faiion. I mean Dillan, Dee, Kris, Kai... and Shixun.”
“Okay. And if this goes wrong?”
“I’ll… I’ll accept full responsibility?”
 
 
 
“Xiomara!” Sehun yapped when he spotted his sister in the hallway to his room.
He had spent the entire day walking around the mansion, only to find out most
of the rooms were locked. Mrs Gump had kept him company in the kitchen for most
of the day when Sehun couldn’t find Mark, Yixing, Chanyeol, Jungkook, Heva or
Xiomara. He wasn’t even hoping to bump into Donghae under any circumstances. He
knew dusk was dawning outside and the number of Minders in the house started to
plummet.
“Whoa, I totally forgot about your hair.” She gasped as Sehun jogged up to her.
“Yeah, no kidding. But that can wait. Where were you all day?”
Yixing showed up behind her and threw an arm around Xiomara’s shoulders. “We
were training first. Then we heard the minister and his family are dropping by
tomorrow. So had to run some urgent errands. Like hiding our Restrainers and
weapons.” Yixing answered Sehun’s question.
“Oh. Did… Gwenna tell you why he’s coming?” Sehun played coy.
“Nope,” Xiomara sighed. “She never really tells us anything.”
“Probably to see the future Recherché.” Yixing suggested and Sehun bowed his
head. “I swear to god, I seriously hate that fat goose.”
“Oh, and you hit on his daughter?” Xiomara snorted, rolling her eyes.
“I’m 99 per cent sure that fat goose is not her father.”
“You hit on her mother, too!”
“I know, right? I don’t know what she sees in that piece of shit.”
Xiomara plunged her elbow into Yixing’s chest and sent him staggering back,
clutching his sternum and groaning. “Have you seen Chanyeol?” she asked Sehun
and the latter gulped.
“Ah, no. Not since morning.” He answered truthfully and hoped that he won’t see
Chanyeol tonight. ‘He knows.’ He mouthed before Yixing straightened up from the
blow. Xiomara’s face wilted as her jaw dropped.
“That’s why Jungkook and I’ve been avoiding him.” she sighed with the subtext
dumbass.
“Avoiding whom?” Yixing asked.
“No one. Sehun, come on. I’ll walk you to your room.” She hauled Sehun to
march, leaving Yixing behind. “How could you so stupidly let him read your
mind?!” she hissed as they hurried toward his room.
“I completely forgot about it!” he hissed back.
“Well, you’ve put me in an awkward position.” She groaned.
“Oh, don’t worry. I’ll explain it to him and he’ll understand.” Sehun shook his
head, rolling his eyes. “Your little crush on him isn’t gonna be affected.”
Xiomara came to an abrupt halt and gaped at her brother. “What crush?” she
grimaced.
“Oh, come on. I see the way you glare at Heva. FYI, I don’t think they’re
dating.”
That earned him a hard slap on the side of his head. “I’m not hitting on
Chanyeol, you dumbass.”
“What? I thought… Ohhh.” He fell completely silent when he realized what was
actually happening. He noticed Xiomara’s cheeks grow red as she bit her lip.
“Sorry.”
“Well, if it’s any comfort, Mr Love Expert, I think Chanyeol’s hitting on you.”
she smirked humourlessly before going back to glaring.
“No, he isn’t.”
“God. You’re an idiot.” She made a low guttural noise before she spun around
and walked away. Palming his own face, Sehun started towards his room.
Coming to a jerky halt, Sehun’s lips parted when he saw Chanyeol leaning
against his room’s door, scowling at the floor. Sehun seriously considered
walking away silently, but then he felt like a child wanting to avoid a
confrontation. It was considerate of Chanyeol to even give him a chance to
explain. He shouldn’t run away. Mustering the courage and breaths, he dragged
his feet to Chanyeol.
“Hey,” He greeted with a faint smile and Chanyeol slowly brought his head up
with a pair of bloodshot eyes and pink cheeks. He kept his lips pursed as he
glowered at Sehun. The stench he reeked of robbed Sehun’s sense. “Oh, my god,
are you drunk?”
“A little.” He spat angrily and grabbed Sehun’s jacket’s sleeve before shoving
the door open and yanked Sehun into the room. Slamming the door shut, he rammed
Sehun against it and slid his hands under Sehun’s shirt before aggressively
clutching the sides of Sehun’s waist.
“Chanyeol!” Sehun gasped when his friend leaned in, smashing his lips on the
side of his neck.
***** Misadventure with a New Look *****
“What are you doing?! Let go of me!” the harder Sehun tried to push him away,
the harsher Chanyeol’s grip on his waist became. His teeth grazed Sehun’s
collarbone as he violently kissed along it, snaking his hand around Sehun’s
waist before he pressed it to the small of his back. Sehun’s mind was a surging
befuddlement—unable to register any of this lecherous quandary. In that
disaster zone, Sehun knew he was close to hurting Chanyeol, and he really did
not want to. “For god’s sake, Chanyeol, are you out of your mind?!” he tried to
keep his voice down, but it was almost impossible to not to scream into
Chanyeol’s ears. His hands were fisting Chanyeol’s shirt, shoving his chest and
Sehun constantly kept struggling to turn his face, thus avoiding Chanyeol’s
lips from ever touching his own. Right now, Chanyeol seemed like he could bite
Sehun’s lips off. There was nothing gentle or rational or even coherent about
Chanyeol at that moment. He cupped a side of Sehun’s face, dragging his hot,
wet lips along Sehun’s jawline, and slid his fumbling hand into the back pocket
of Sehun’s jeans. He was burning against Sehun—panting and moaning. It took
Sehun a moment to take in the heat Chanyeol was fuming and he found himself
sharing the heat when Chanyeol slid his fingers past the waistband of his jeans
and brushed Sehun’s protruding tailbone. Clenching his eyes shut, Sehun sucked
in a desperate breath and titled his head back against the door, arching his
neck forward as Chanyeol peppered it with aggressive kisses. His hot breath
against his neck crumbled Sehun’s resistance as Chanyeol’s hand glided around
his waist under the t-shirt. The graze of his teeth and tongue along with the
blended scent of sweat and alcohol and something oceanic intoxicated Sehun. His
fists loosened around Chanyeol’s shirt and he let his hands sag down to
Chanyeol’s abs. Sliding a hand under Chanyeol’s shirt, Sehun traced the trail
of hair leading up to Chanyeol’s navel with his fingertips. That was when
Chanyeol’s kisses turned tender at the side of Sehun’s neck, slightly below his
earlobe. They felt almost as good as Kai’s. His mind was unconsciously cast
back to the time when Kai had him pinned to a wall with his lips and tongue all
over Sehun’s neck.
Sehun’s eyes flashed open and gasping in a ravenous breath, he raised his hands
to Chanyeol’s chest before giving him a brutal shove. Staggering back, Chanyeol
panted, blinking wildly. “Sehun,” he rasped, wiping a corner of his lips with
the back of his hand. Catching his breath, Sehun kept his eyes peeled, glaring
at Chanyeol as if to tacitly warn him to stay away. “You made out with Kai.” He
breathed out, jaw-dropped.
“What the hell, I wasn’t even thinking about it!”
Chanyeol clenched his jaw. “No, you weren’t. But I guessed it right, didn’t I?”
Dammit. Sehun closed his eyes and shook his head. “That was… that was back at
FLAC.”
“Yeah, now you’re thinking about it.” he sighed, rubbing his forehead before he
dragged his feet to the king-sized bed and flumped to sit on its foot.
“What on earth are you doing, Chanyeol?” Sehun pulled himself away from the
door with his heart hammering against his chest. Chanyeol kept his head hung as
he slouched with his shoulders drooping forward. Rubbing the back of his neck,
Sehun swallowed the lump in his throat, unsure of what was going on.
“Chanyeol?”
“Is that why you still have a soft spot for your enemy?”
Sehun’s eyebrows rose in appalment. “He’s not my enemy. He’s my mother’s enemy.
My mother whom I never knew even existed a week ago,” he sighed, dropping on
the settee near the wardrobe. Chanyeol looked over to him with fatigue etched
all over his face. “Yes, Chanyeol. I did see Kai last night. And you know what,
he didn’t do anything. He let us go.”
“Has it ever occurred to you that he might be getting into your head so that
you will choose his side?”
“Well, so far he’s the only one who’s making an effort.” Sehun scoffed and
snickered, but Chanyeol’s brows furrowed into an unimpressed scowl.
“What, Sehun? You don’t think you’re on the right side? How could you be so
blind? Kai’s trying to get to you. And your little infatuation on him is
definitely going to aid his cause.”
“Whoa. You’re surely one to talk about infatuations. What the hell were you
doing two minutes ago?”
Chanyeol was tight-lipped as he dropped his head, balling his hands into fists.
“Look. Can you please just… go and get some sleep? We can talk in the morning
when you’re sober,” Sehun leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and
clasped his hands together. “And when you’re not in the mood to eat my face.”
he whispered the last part out, but Chanyeol caught it all too clearly as he
shot Sehun a miserable look.
“You asked me what I’m doing here and why I’m not back at FLAC. Well, for
starters, I can’t go back. And I don’t want to.”
Sehun licked his lips, staring at Chanyeol’s strong hands that were all over
his body a while ago. Shaking the thought away, he looked up to Chanyeol’s
face. “Why?”
“Because I’ve always known about the Four, Sehun. If you ever took the time to
get to know me better, maybe you’d understand why I’m here,” He jolted up to
his feet. Sehun felt a pang to his heart. “And why I don’t want to go back to
that fucked up world outside. But no. You’re far more interested in Kai—the guy
who works for the man who wants to use you for world destruction.”
“Chanyeol,” he sighed. “Kai and I don’t have anything between us, okay? It was
a one-time thing. Nothing even happened. And I’m still here, aren’t I? You
don’t see me rushing into Kai’s arms. I am on your side. Even if I’m not sure
what the heck yourside is doing. Trust me, Chanyeol. Until now, you’re one of
the normal things that’s happened to me in my… crazy ass life.”
“And I just made it hella awkward for both of us,” He murmured to himself,
scratching the back of his head. “God, I’m such an idiot.”
Sehun chewed on his lip, averting his gaze. He was sure Chanyeol was
deliberately not explaining himself. “It’s just… a little… out of the sudden.
I…” he licked his lips, rubbing his jaw. “You never… left any hints.” His
throat burned.
Vaguely nodding his head, Chanyeol scrubbed his face with his bare palm. “I
shouldn’t have thrown myself at you like that. I’m sorry.”
Sehun smiled an insincere smile. “It’s okay.”
As silence stretched between them, the tension grew hotter and hotter. Sehun
eventually rose to his feet, suffocating due to shortage of breath. “Sehun—”
“No, Chanyeol. Just… can you just leave?” he panted without even looking to
Chanyeol as he took his jacket off.
“I’m sorry.”
“I said it’s okay.” He climbed into bed before kicking his shoes off.
“Okay,” he fidgeted for a moment, stumbling here and there, rubbing his nape.
“Uh, Sehun.”
Letting out a loud sigh, Sehun sat up, loosely hugging his knees. “What is it,
Chanyeol?”
He gnawed on his lip for a moment as his cheeks coloured. “Do you wanna go out
with me? Well, not technically out. But you know,” he blurted out like a drunk
man before he dropped to one of his knees at the foot of the bed. Sehun’s mind
turned into a blank slate as he gaped at Chanyeol. All that Sehun could think
of after that was Kai. “All right,” Chanyeol muttered at once and stood back
up. “Message received. Sorry. Good night.” Stuttering, he shook his head and
started towards the door. Sehun still sat, unmoving as he stared at Chanyeol
until the guy vanished through the door, slamming it shut behind him.
 “Urgh,” grunting, he fell back on the bed and threw an arm over his eyes. That
was the first time anyone had asked him out. And of course Sehun had to drive
him out of the room by just staring at the guy. Pulling the arm off his eyes,
Sehun aimlessly glowered at the intricate patterns on the ceiling. “Xiomara was
right. I am an idiot,” he breathed to himself, wondering if Chanyeol had ever
flirted with him before. Kris had. Multiple times. Although now that Sehun
thought about it, it might have been because Kris wanted to earn Sehun’s trust.
Chanyeol was this amazing guy. But he did seem a little dodgy and Sehun did not
know much about him or his background. Sehun had to be a fool if he rejected
Chanyeol, pining for Kai who may or may not have a thing for him. Who may or
may not be supervillain. “No, Sehun. You need to focus.” He closed his eyes. He
can’t afford to allow himself the luxury of dating anyone while being held
captive because he was apparently one of the superior Flairers. A month ago,
Sehun was a nobody.
 
 
 
“Will you just sit still for one second?!” Xiomara hissed, yanking a handful of
Sehun’s hair before chopping it off. She was still dissatisfied with the
haircut after she had dyed his hair earlier with a surprise colour. Sehun could
only hope it wasn’t green.
“Would it kill you to be a little gentle?” he groaned, tilting his head when
his sister shoved it.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Remind me to get you an extra soft kitten brush.”
Sehun sighed, glancing to the window. “I’m practically falling asleep. Why do
you have to be here so early in the morning?”
“Because this is the only timeslot I could find in my schedule to wipe away
your derpiness before the annoying minister comes over.”
“How annoying is he?”
“From scale 1 to Bastard? Um, let me see,” she turned Sehun’s head to trim the
side. “Bastard.”
“Wow. What does he… do? I mean he can’t literally be a minister, right?”
“Oh, he is. He manages the super secretive alliances with the Pootles.
Therefore, he thinks he owns us,” Xiomara scoffed, brushing Sehun’s shoulders.
“Did you talk to Chanyeol?”
Sehun felt his heart skip a beat. The first thing he thought about when Xiomara
slapped him to wake him up in the morning was his hand lingering on Chanyeol’s
abs. “Sort of.”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t think he’s going to tell anyone.”
“He better not. Otherwise,” she clicked the scissors near Sehun’s nose before
she hurled it to the bed and picked up the hair gel. “We’re done.”
“Really?” Sehun jumped to his feet and spun around to meet his sister’s
complacent grin. “Please tell me I’m not bald.”
“You’re not bald.” She took hold of Sehun’s arms and ushered him to the
wardrobe.
“Can I at least look at myself first?”
“No. Not until all your derpiness is gone,” she handed Sehun a V-neck t-shirt.
“Oh, no. Nah-uh. I’m not wearing purple.”
“It’s magenta,” she rolled her eyes with the subtext dumbass. “You’ll look
hot.”
“No way. Purple is a total gay colour. It screams gay!”
“Bieber likes purple. Bieber’s not gay.”
“You don’t know that.”
“Okay, you’re wearing this. End of story.” She shoved the t-shirt into Sehun’s
chest before grabbing a pair of black leather pants from the wardrobe.
“I won’t even be able to fit into that! They suck the soul out of my legs.”
“I wanted a brother. Not a whiny Paris Hilton.” She tossed Sehun the pants.
Then she crouched to the floor before pulling out a pair of rocker boots.
“No. No way,” Sehun retreated a step back. “Over my dead body.” he whispered.
“Do you want to look good or not?”
“Not.”
Heaving a loud sigh, Xiomara rose to her full height and cocked her head. “I
can be very persuasive, you know.”
“Yeah, I can see that.”
“Just the magenta t-shirt, pants and boots. I won’t even force you to try the
jacket on. You look like Kristen Stewart on a bad day. Listen. Nobody’s gonna
take you seriously over here if you keep being that timid little schoolboy. You
really need to up your game. And the first step to confidence,” she stepped
forward, holding the boots out. “Is to look… confident.”
Sehun licked his lips, looking down at the boots. “I’m not sure how wearing
boots with three hundred buckles would look confident.”
“I never had a brother to play dress up with.” she frowned, jutting her lower
lip out.
“You’re shit, you know that?” he groaned and snatched the boots from her. A
smile instantly stretched Xiomara’s lips and she shrugged.
“Go on. And don’t peep in the mirror.”
Muttering a string of decent swear words, Sehun stepped into the bathroom.
When he exited, clad in very inappropriately tight clothes, Xiomara shot up
from the bed and smirked at him. “How do I look?”
“From scale 1 to Dork?” she flashed a toothy smile, ushering Sehun to the
mirror. “You tell me.”
Sehun felt his stomach gurgle as his heart pounded in his chest while his jaw
dropped to the floor. “Fff—whoa.” His hair was gelled and spiked at the back
and perfectly styled at the front, hanging a little longer than rest. The
streaks of greyish silver highlights complimented his newly blonde hair. The t-
shirt was not as tight as it seemed before he put it on and Xiomara was right.
Purple did make him look good.
“So?”
“I look like a rockstar.”
“That’s not a bad thing.”
Sehun sighed and turned around to face his sister with a smile. “Thanks.”
“I did the fashion world a favour.” She patted on Sehun’s chest, shrugging.
The door sprung open out of the blue and Mark barged in before coming to a
jerky halt with his eyes bulged out. “Whoa what the…” he trailed off, gawking
at Sehun.
“Doesn’t he look good enough to eat?” Xiomara sniggered, throwing an arm over
Sehun’s shoulders.
“Your words, not mine,” Mark smirked, sticking his forefinger out. “You do
look… different. Good different. Anyway, if you’re done with your little
makeover, we gotta fly. Philip's here.” He rolled his eyes, shaking his head.
“Philip?” Sehun raised his brow. “The minister?”
“Yeah, chop-chop. Oh, and no, I wasn’t insulting you. You look great.” He
turned on his heel and stormed out of the room.
“You heard the boss,” Xiomara chimed. “Chop-chop.” Laughing, she led the way
and Sehun gave himself one last look in the mirror before hurrying after her.
“Please tell me chop-chop is not a thing.” He groaned.
“Oh, stop being so insecure. You’re handsome now. And believe me, I never say
‘handsome’. Nothing could go wrong. Bat your eyes if you’re in trouble and who
knows, you might just get yourself a ride home.” She cut herself off when Heva
called her name in the hallway.
“Xi!”
“Does everyone know?” Sehun whispered to his sister who glared at him in
return.
“No. And we’re gonna keep it that way.” she hissed, prodding a finger into
Sehun’s stomach.
“Have you guys seen Chanyeol?” Heva inquired, walking up to them.
“Why are you asking about him?” Xiomara snapped, crossing her arms over her
breasts.
Heva ran her slender fingers through her long wavy hair. “He’s just… gone.”
“Good. That’s one problem solved.” Xiomara scoffed and Heva frowned at her.
“If you see him, can you—”
“No.” she grabbed Sehun’s arm and hauled him to turn around and walk forward
towards the staircase.
“Don’t you think you were a little rude to her back there?” he whispered,
hurtling down the stairs. “I’m not sure that’s how you express your affection
to people you love.”
“Whoa. Time out. Who said anything about l… l-love?” she gripped Sehun’s arm,
halting at the bottom of the stairs. “I only…” she looked around, lowering her
voice further. “Kinda like her.”
“Oh—kay. Uh… um… I still don’t think that’s how you should express your
affection to people you… kinda like.”
“Don’t make me regret being nice to you.” she walked away, shaking her head.
“Nice to me? You manipulated me to wear these torture you call pants. They grab
me everywhere.”
“You’re welcome I did your ass a favour. You were killing those perfect round
buns with your nanny jeans,” she stopped at the hallway. “You look fabulous.”
“Now I’m glad I didn’t have a sister.”
“Drawing room’s to the right, second door. Break a leg.” She flashed a brief
grin and shoved past him.
“Wait, you’re not coming?”
“Well, unlike you, I’m not elite-born. I’m the end result of an affair; I have
no place in politics. See you later.”
Sehun’s face withered. “That’s insane.”
“Yeah, well, life isn’t always fair, Prince Sehun.” She did a mocking courtesy
before she strutted away.
Sighing, Sehun started towards the drawing room. Mark opened the door as soon
as Sehun knocked on it. “Come in,” he sighed, ushering Sehun into the drawing
room. Bookshelves, a piano, carpets, drapes and chaise lounges congested the
huge room. His mother was standing by the piano, wearing the same gentle smile
on her face. A fairly plump man was seated on the chaise lounge and was glaring
at Sehun as if Sehun had stomped on his dinner. On the chaise lounge opposite
sat two women—one young and the other possibly as old as Gwenna—and a man,
almost Mark’s age. “The chunky one’s the minister.” Mark whispered in the
lowest voice possible as he ushered Sehun to walk toward them.
“Sehun,” his mother called. “This is—”
“Philip Vaughn,” The chunky one shot up from his seat and held his hand out.
Taking it, Sehun gave the thick hand a firm shake. The man was almost bald.
“Well, he’s a handsome bit,” Philip finally grinned and chuckled, glancing back
to Gwenna. “How old are you, son?”
“Turning 17 soon.” Sehun withdrew his hand.
“Ah, Gwen,” he sighed. “17. That’s way too young. Are you sure he’s ready?”
“That’s not why you’re here, Philip.” Mark interrupted.
“Hm,” he sported the most plastic smile ever. “Well, Sehun. Meet my wife,
Helena,” Sehun bowed his head at the older woman. “My daughter Jule and my son
Adam.”
Jule’s golden curls and ivory skin would leave any men breathless. Her plump
red lips quirked into a subtle smile as she eyed Sehun earnestly. “Pleasure to
finally meet you, Sehun.” she rose to her feet and extended a hand which Sehun
took reflexively.
“Likewise, Miss Vaughn.”
“Oh, please call me Jule.”
“Ah, young people click so fast!” Philip guffawed. Adam stood almost as tall as
Sehun with his hand stuck out for a brief handshake. “Sit, son.”
Sehun uncomfortably took his seat on the chaise lounge next to Philip.
“I hear that you are interested in inviting Faiion over for your coronation.”
“Yes,” Sehun replied monotonously, contemplating the cautious look on his
mother’s face. “I… am.”
“Now, son. You seem like an over-ambitious young chap. But I’m not sure you
have the right defences on your behalf to invite the people who would really
like to see your mother dead.” His smile was very misleading and Sehun was
deeply irked by it.
“Dad,” Jule called. “I think it’s a wonderful idea. But then again, I’m not
sure it’s the smartest idea.” She eyed Sehun with a grave look.
“It can be possible,” said Philip. “Only if you convince me that you have what
it takes to defend yourselves, andus should it come to a fight.”
“What do you mean?” Sehun arched a brow at the man.
Clearing his throat, Philip turned to Gwenna. “Are you sure your son is ready
to accept the title and responsibility of a Recherché?”
“He will be ready.” She answered firmly.
“Oh, my dear. That is not good enough,” he snickered. “You see, I get that
you’re in a rush to hand your duties over to him. But he seems… a little naked
over here. And I’m not talking about his indecent clothes.”
Sehun noticed Adam hiding a smirk behind his hand. “I have support,” Sehun
said. “There are six of us.”
“Whom I assume are not experienced when it comes to management.” He looked
incredibly proud and Sehun wanted to punch his teeth in.
“I hate to agree, but he’s sort of right, Gwenna,” said Mark. “None of us
actually know anything about the duties you hold. All we know is how to fight
and I don’t think that’s good enough to back up Sehun when Faiion’s gonna have
two or more Recherchés.”
“I did come here to talk about this invitation to Faiion and have lunch with
your beautiful family. But it seems I might have something else to do here,
seeing that your son is totally a green horn in this arena.” He rubbed Sehun’s
back as if to comfort him. Jolting up to his feet, Sehun faced Philip.
“Can you help or not?”
“Of course,” he stood up, smiling the fakest smile. “I would love to beat you
into shape. Oh, not literally. What we can do is have a representative over
from Faiion’s side while you’re being beaten into shape. That way, Faiion can
be certain that you’re not building a trap.”
“It’s an honorary invitation. He can just choose to not to come if he’s so damn
paranoid.” Mark scoffed.
“My point is, if you want something to happen, you are going to need to do
something to convince them that you are not against them,” said Philip. “I’d
love to stick around and monitor while the representative is around, but I have
better things to do.”
“I can help,” Jule said, smirking at Sehun. She was dressed in office attires
and looked grimly sharp. She could be more than a couple of years older than
Sehun. “Besides, I’m too bored at the office anyway.”
“That’s marvellous!” Philip chimed. “Now, who’s hungry?”
***** “Guess it’s just you and me, huh, Mrs Gump.” *****
“That old noob can’t even pronounce problematic right. Watch this,” Mark
scoffed before shoving a spoonful of his creamy potato gratin into his mouth.
“Pabobabic.” He mumbled with his mouth full of food and lips pouting.
Sehun chuckled along with the rest, playfully forking the sausages. The best
thing about Mrs Gump was that her cooking never missed. Never. She was like the
fairy godmother of food or something.
“Remember when he tried to say the ‘apple a day’ thing?” Yixing added after
swallowing and settled his elbows on the dining table, clasping his hands
together.
“Oh, yes!” Jungkook yelped. “Apple. One day, doctor run away!” he squealed and
giggled as everyone fell silent.
“No one could have sounded cuter than that.” Xiomara remarked, seductively
licking the back of her spoon and Jungkook looked flustered for a second before
he glared at her.
“I’m not cute,” he hissed and shot Sehun a sidelong glance. “I’m not cute,” he
whispered. “I’m almost a man.”
Sehun carefully nodded his head. “Of course.” he muttered and turned to Donghae
at the dining table in the kitchen. Mrs Gump silently sat on her stool, still
in her dirty stained apron, while knitting.
“You’re telling him,” Donghae pointed his fork in Sehun’s direction. “He isn’t
a man himself.”
“I’m turning 17 next month.” Sehun presented his point of argument.
“What about your dick?”
“Whoa, are we forgetting we have a lady in our presence?” Yixing faked a gasp
and waved at Mrs Gump. “Sorry, Mrs Gump. We’ll mind Donghae’s language.” That
earned him a scowl from Xiomara as she hurled a couple of lentils in his way.
Sehun dropped his head, smiling to himself. He was sitting at a table during
dinner with people he now had to call family. These people accepted him as he
was. No one judged. He was not a Freak because they were all Freaks. Family.
Well, maybe not Donghae. Sehun could not figure the guy out and why he was so
hostile towards him.
“Are we still on with the Spring Ball plan?” Yixing asked after a moment.
“Of course. I can’t wait.” Donghae replied and everyone but Sehun grinned
sheepishly.
“Sorry. What Spring Ball?” Sehun inquired.
“FLAC’s Spring Ball.” Mark enlightened him.
“What about it?”
“We’re gonna slip in.”
“What?! How?”
“We’ll dress up pretty. Mingle. No one will notice. We’ve done this couple of
times and it’s hilarious as fuck. Trust me.”
“Wouldn’t people notice you’re outsiders?”
“That’s the wonderful thing about Dillan’s balls. They’re for outsiders, too.”
“Whoa!” Donghae, Yixing and Xiomara squawked in unison, laughing ridiculously.
“Heard it as soon as I said it,” Mark chuckled, raising his palms in defence.
“So long we stay out those people’s sight, we’re fine.”
“Can’t wait. I’m sure you’re hoping to bump into Deevana, aren’t you?” Yixing
shot Mark a smirk.
“Shut up.”
“What about Deevana?” Sehun asked, baffled.
“She’s Mark’s ex-girlfriend. Hot couple, I must admit.”
Sehun gulped. “But she’s with Kai now?”
“Heard she got knocked up. Pretty sure it’s not Kai.”
“It’s not me either, so shut the hell up,” Mark snapped. “Philip just brings
the worst out of you, doesn’t he, Sehun?” Mark proceeded with the topic about
the minister whom Sehun had immediately developed a great detestation. The man
was more interested in finding the most obvious flaws in Sehun than discussing
the conciliations between Gwenna and Faiion.
“Three minutes in.” Sehun admitted.
“Donghae almost punched that pansy’s teeth in thirty minutes after meeting
him.” Xiomara scoffed.
“Donghae almost punched everyone’s teeth in thirty minutes meeting them.”
Yixing supplemented and the table, excluding Donghae, burst into another
guffaw.
“You guys do realize your jokes are pathetic, right?” Donghae snorted, rolling
his eyes.
“Of course. They’re about you!” Donghae jolted up from his seat and yanked
Yixing into a headlock.
“Hey, hey, settle down!” Mark yapped although he was still chuckling. “I don’t
want Mrs Gump to throw us out again. Eating in Donghae’s room makes me feel
like a pig.”
“He’s saying it’s like a pigsty.” Jungkook whispered to Sehun and the latter
grimaced at him.
“Yes, Jungkook. I got that.” He whispered back.
“Sorry. I just… uh… never mind.”
“What cookieboo means is that you’re too cool for school,” said Xiomara. “No
offence.”
Sehun rolled his jaw and shook his head. “None taken.”
“Stop calling me that.” Jungkook shoved Xiomara by the arm until she almost
fell off the chair.
“That’ll be your codename if we ever had one.” She let out a hearty laugh.
“Mine will be Adapter. Mark’s can be Boss. Donghae’s will be Mad Jinx. Xi’s
probably will be Momma Monsta. Sehun probably will go for Catastrophe now.
Jungkook’s can be Forever Alone. Kai… um Nightmare. Kris Atomic. Deevana
Paralysis. Of course Gwenna can be Headmistress.” Yixing listed and everyone
laughed except Donghae and Jungkook.
“Yixing,” Donghae called in a very composed and low voice. That was when
Jungkook shot up and slammed the chair down before storming out of the kitchen
as the laughter died. “Smart.” He hissed and rose from his seat as well. After
giving the back of Yixing’s head a hard slap, Donghae ran after Jungkook.
The table fell awkwardly silent and Sehun glanced to Xiomara, looking for an
explanation. “I didn’t mean that.” Yixing muttered and stood up before treading
on Jungkook and Donghae’s footsteps.
With just Mark and Xiomara left at the table, Sehun bit his lip. “What
happened?” he finally asked.
Xiomara completely ignored Sehun as she fiddled with the lentils on her plate.
“Jungkook’s Flair is Poison Generation,” Mark said and Sehun nodded as he
already knew that. “He doesn’t have complete control over it. He generates
toxic and fatal poisons from his body when he loses it due to anger,
exasperation, frustration or even excitement. So… it makes it impossible for
him to… you know… touch… others.”
Sehun dropped his knife and slumped back against the chair. He could only lick
his lips, wondering what the three brothers had to go through without either of
their parents here. Yixing and Donghae seemed pretty tight and they must
obviously love their brother no matter how much they pick on him. But they were
both way older than Jungkook, which was probably why he hung out with Xiomara.
“You should get to bed, Sehun. It’s going to be a long day tomorrow,” Mark
wiped his mouth with the napkin and rose to his full height. “Xi, can I see you
at the range for a while?”
As soon as Xiomara had bowed her head, Mark vamoosed out of there. “I had no
idea.” Sehun murmured.
“We’re all flawed, aren’t we?” Xiomara tossed her napkin onto the table and
left the kitchen. Running his hands through his newly cut hair, Sehun exhaled a
loud sigh.
“Guess it’s just you and me, huh, Mrs Gump.”
“Get out of my kitchen.” She spat, casually knitting that looked like a
muffler. Heaving another sigh, Sehun started for his room.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
“It’s like you’re not even trying!” Donghae barked, teleporting himself to the
southern end of the ballroom again.
“Don’t be too fast, Donghae,” Mark called out, tiredly leaning against the wall
with his bulky arms crossed over his chest. “Sehun, this is why you need to
focus.”
“I am! Trying.” He sighed. The tight leather pants were making it harder for
him to even move. They had been over this for about seven hours since morning
and Sehun still couldn’t be fast enough to capture Donghae in a sandstorm. For
two days, all that they were teaching Sehun was to focus on a particular spot
and person. Sehun almost got it right the day before. But now it just seem
almost impossible. He could never hit when his target is moving around.
“There has to be another way.” Yixing suggested as he paced the floor, hands
stuck in his pants’ pockets. With sweat beads dripping off his bangs, Sehun
bent down, gripping his knees and panted for air.
“We’ve been at this for three fucking days. He needs motivation,” Donghae spat
and stomped towards Sehun. “And he ain’t gonna get any if you keep babying him
like this.”
Sehun straightened up and scowled at the man before he felt a lurch in his
guts. He felt it before he saw it. Donghae’s fist was planted into his stomach,
crushing his abdomen and Sehun arched forward with blood pounding in his ears.
“Donghae!” he heard Mark shout. That was when Sehun’s rocker boot came up to
Donghae’s chest and he stomped on it as hard as he calf could manage, sending
Donghae flying back, dropping to the floor with a thud. Mark and Yixing froze
in their tracks, gaping, when Sehun plunged his hands out. Within a second, the
sand in the containers Mark had brought in that morning burst out of the
containers and like an efflux, it flowed surrounded Donghae like a whirlpool.
Sehun’s vision blurred and greyed as his chest tightened. All that he could see
right then was walls of grey that were closing by Donghae. Target.
“Okay, that’s enough! Sehun!” An authoritative voice commanded and Sehun
snapped out it, blinking his eyes furiously as the sand dropped to the floor as
if it were unhanded. Amidst it, Donghae gaped at him with his mouth hanging
open and eyes bulging out. Pulling himself out of the grey world, Sehun
realized he was pinned to a wall with Mark’s powerful hands pressing his
shoulders back.
“What the fuck?!” Donghae spewed, staggering up to his feet and shoved Yixing’s
aiding hand away.
“Donghae, calm down,” Mark ordered, releasing Sehun’s shoulders. “First of all,
ah-mazing,” he smiled, taking a few steps back. “Secondly,” he sighed. “What
did you just do, Sehun?”
Sobbing for air, Sehun felt like ripping his shirt off. It was sticking to his
sweaty body like a second skin. “I don’t know. I didn’t mean to hurt him.”
“Did you know that your eyes turned… white?”
“What?!” he gasped.
“I take that as a no,” He shook his head and turned his head around when the
ballroom’s door sprung open. “What is it, Chanyeol?”
“Chanyeol!” Sehun yelped and shoved past Mark, breaking into a jog toward the
door. “Where the hell have you been?!”
Chanyeol glowered at first, but the hard expression softened a little when
Sehun touched his arm. “I needed… a breather.” He sighed.
Is this because what I did? Sehun asked, frowning deeply and Chanyeol subtly
shook his head. I’m sorry, Chanyeol. I should have given you an answer.All that
he could think about whenever he was alone in his room was how Chanyeol had him
pinned to the door with his hot lips all over his neck. Although Mark, Yixing
and Donghae had kept him quite distracted yesterday, Sehun constantly found
himself wondering about what would be so bad if he went out with Chanyeol. He
really needed to stop pining for something that was way out of his reach.
Chanyeol was here. He can make Sehun happy.
“But you didn’t,” Chanyeol muttered and shook Sehun’s hand off his arm before
turning his attention to Mark. “You guys need to come down. The minister is
here. With some guests.”
Mark, Yixing and Donghae shared a sceptical look before they stormed out of the
ballroom. Chanyeol immediately started after them, but was stopped by Sehun’s
grip on his arm. “Chanyeol,” Sehun murmured as Chanyeol turned to face him.
I’ll go out with you.
That instant, Chanyeol’s face lit up like Christmas and his jaw fell slacking.
“What?”
“I’ll go out with you.” he said and smiled.
As fast as his face had lit up, it dimmed. Chanyeol pursed his lips and walked
away without a proper response. Frowning, Sehun hurried after him.
“Chanyeol!”
“Sehun!” Xiomara cried from the hallway and Sehun stopped to let her catch up.
“I see he’s back.” she scowled at Chanyeol’s back.
“Xi, don’t worry. He asked me out.”
Xiomara arched a brow at Sehun. “Called it. So totally called it. I’m not even
surprised.” She was grinning from ear to ear, probably because she now knew
Chanyeol was not after her girl.
“I said yes… like after two days and he… he didn’t say anything.”
“Ouch. I don’t know who I feel sorrier for.”
Sehun shook his head disappointedly and descended down the stairs. “Me. ‘Cause
I’m about to meet the minister again.” he mumbled.
Upon reaching the bottom of the stairs, he stared at the crowd in the hallway
and pushed through it with Xiomara. “You’ve got to be kidding me.” Xiomara
exhaled when they came to the door. Mark, Yixing, Donghae, Jungkook were all
blocking the way. Sehun spotted the minister first before his eyes darted to
the black-clad figure that was leaning against the doorframe with his arms
crossed over his chest. Sehun’s heart sank to the pit of his stomach at once as
his mind turned into a blank slate. Kai’s gaze fell directly on Sehun and a
mischievous smirk took form on his nonchalant face. Knocked for six, Sehun
gaped at him. Dee was standing beside Kai, frowning.
“They’re not here to fight!” Philip yapped. “Where is Gwenna?”
“Like hell we’re gonna let you near her.” Mark snarled with his hands clenched
into fists at his sides.
“You fucking led them here?! You defied our agreement!” Donghae spat and
stepped forward with a hand raised to Philip’s neck.
Kai stepped in and put himself between the minister and Donghae. Lightly, he
shoved Donghae back by the chest, still smiling complacently. “We’re not here
for a war. Trust me, if we were, you won’t be standing and talking,” He almost
sounded as calm as a teacher and Sehun’s heart was still hammering against his
chest. “And clearly, we’re outnumbered,” He extended an arm to Dee, making a
gesture. “We’re not idiots to fight you right now.”
“We found the deal to be appealing,” Dee said, stepping forward. “And we’re
here to accept it.”
Sehun unconsciously started to grin. The crowd of Minders began to break apart
and Sehun spun around to see Gwenna making her way—graceful as always—to the
door. “Welcome to our house,” she said in a monotonous voice and an
expressionless face. Her burgundy gown flowed behind her with her wavy hair
flowing on one side. She could be a queen. Sehun definitely was not a prince.
“Minister,” she greeted Philip and his daughter, Jule with a curt bow of her
head. Then she faced Kai with a smile. “It’s been a while, Kim Kai.”
“It has.” Kai sighed and bowed his head as if to pay his respects. Gwenna,
finally smiling, turned to Deevana.
“How have you been?” she sounded political, but Sehun saw the longing in both
Deevana and Gwenna’s eyes. Dee clenched and released her fists, nodding her
head.
“Fine, mother. Kai takes good care of me.”
“I’m sure he does,” her tone was a little sceptical. Sehun did not miss the way
she looked at Kai—with complete cynicism. “Let us go to the drawing room,” She
twirled around and stopped before Sehun. “You too, Sehun.”
Chanyeol threw Sehun a mocking look and Sehun did not need to be telepathic to
know what he was thinking. Swallowing the lump in his throat, Sehun waited
until Kai and Deevana were gone down the hallway before he followed. “How are
you, Sehun?” Jule asked as she took his side.
“Good. You, Jule?” he asked to be polite. But she didn’t get the chance to
reply when Sehun walked into the drawing room. His eyes instantaneously scanned
the room for Kai who was standing by the bookshelf and he immediately looked to
Sehun, pinning him with his heart-breaking smirk. He was smiling at Sehun! When
had that happened before?! Sehun tried to calm his heart, but he couldn’t. Kai
was here. In the same house, under the same roof and they weren’t trying to
kill each other. Yet.
“Would you like to have something?” Gwenna offered and again, Kai shot Sehun a
glance—this time without a smirk.
“No, I’m good.” Kai replied and Dee simply shook her head.
Gwenna settled on the chaise lounge and smiled at her daughter. “Four months?”
she asked and Dee flushed pink.
“Can we just discuss the matter at hand first?” Kai butted in.
“Why did Faiion send you both?” she asked Kai.
“We’re the only ones who volunteered,” He shrugged. “And the only ones who’re
old enough to not to be manipulated by you.”
Gwenna smiled softly.
“Look, Gwen,” Philip started. “As agreed, my daughter will be here to supervise
all activities related to Sehun.”
“What?” Sehun interrupted, but Philip went on ignoring him.
“She will report everything to the ministry. And you get one week to come to
terms. By due date, I hope you will have come to a reasonable decision. I shall
take my leave first. Got elsewhere to be.” He bowed and kissed Gwenna’s hand
before hurtling out of the drawing room.
Sighing, Gwenna turned to Jule. “Can you give us a moment?”
Jule nodded her head and exited the room.
“I am glad it is you two who came,” Gwenna said. “Kai, I last saw you when you
were a teenage boy. And you… Before you turned to…” she trailed off, lowering
her weathered eyes.
“Look. We’re not here to bond,” Kai snapped. “Purely political.”
Gwenna tiredly smiled at him. “Of course. I will personally see to it that your
stay here is well-accommodated. And I hope to see you both attend my son’s
welcome party this Friday.”
“Okay, wait what?” Sehun cut in. “One, what welcome party? Two, I’m not gonna
have Jule tail me everywhere. And three, they’re gonna stay here for week?!”
“For a former pupil, you’re not so excited to meet your teacher again after so
long.” Kai remarked, smirking and Sehun couldn’t believe his eyes. What was Kai
so freaking happy about?! “Did you get your body pierced as well, Sehun?”
Then he realized what Kai was smirking for. The bloody leather pants, the tight
maroon t-shirt, the rocker boots that Sehun was wearing and the leather wrist
band. Plus the blonde hair with silver streaks. “Maybe I will.” He spat back
and turned his scowl to his mother.
“You two know each other well?” she asked and Sehun immediately shook his head.
“No. He’s just my snobby teacher back at FLAC.”
“Ah, yes. I remember. You two work for Dillan in her school.”
“Mother, father is not going to agree to this unless you give him what he
demands.” Dee blurted out.
“I know. But Sehun thinks it is worth a try.”
“So this was your idea.” Kai scoffed.
“Yes, so?” Sehun glowered.
“Sehun, excuse us for a minute, will you?” Gwenna appealed.
***** “Get out. We’re not that close.” *****
The air was suddenly too silent and brittle as if it could snap. But somewhere
in the house, a faucet was leaking and the sound resonated down the hallway
like a cymbal. Sehun paced back and forth by the drawing room’s door, his
frazzled nerves frayed to the quick, firing in all directions. How he wished he
had some super-hearing Flair right now. He tried to slide his hands into the
front pockets of his pants and dropped them back to his sides when he realized
the pants were too tight to allow it. He nervously scratched the back of his
head, glancing to the door and groaned a little in dismay. What could they be
talking about?
He spun around when he heard the cacophonous thuds of footsteps and frowned at
Mark, Jungkook, Donghae, Yixing and Xiomara strutting up to him. “What the hell
is going on?!” Donghae bellowed with his expression screaming with rage.
“You think I know?” Sehun arched a brow. Donghae clenched his jaw, probably
still mad that he got his butt kicked by Sehun a while ago.
Mark brushed past Donghae and peered at the closed door of the drawing room.
“Is Gwenna in there with them? I just saw Jule at the foyer.”
“Yeah,” Sehun sighed, shoving his hands into the back pockets of his pants.
They barely fit in there. “Why are they not at each other’s throat? Gwenna
seems… nice to them.”
“Beats me.” Mark shrugged.
Donghae made a low guttural noise. “This is your brilliant idea, right?” he
took a step forward with his chest pushed out.
“When he said representatives, I didn’t think it will actually be one of them.”
Sehun hissed back, grinding his jaw. Donghae stood hard and still, just as
adamant as Sehun.
“Okay, hormonal bulls,” Xiomara grabbed Donghae’s arm and yanked him back.
“We’ve got bigger problems at the moment than your little girl dramas. Did you
guys realize we’re gonna be housing our enemies?” she snapped under her breath.
“Yeah, Xi. I think we’ve got that on board,” Yixing remarked. “I’m not sure
what Madam Gwenna is thinking. She definitely cannot trust them!”
“Hey, settle down,” Mark ordered calmly. “If anything, Gwenna knows what she’s
doing. She wouldn’t have agreed to any of this blindly just because Sehun
demanded it. She kept us safe till now. Let’s just put our faith in her.”
Donghae shoved Mark by the shoulder. “Are you kidding? Mark, why on earth do
you think Faiion, the man who wants us all either dead or on his side, would
send two of his Ten here if he didn’t have an ulterior motive?”
“I’m not saying he doesn’t. Or maybe he’s desperate now that Sehun’s on our
side. This is the only chance for him to get this close. I doubt he will let it
slip right between his fingers.”
“So you trust them?” Donghae scowled, jerking his index finger to the drawing
room.
“Not with shit,” Mark’s sudden outburst startled Sehun. “I didn’t say we
shouldn’t be extra cautious. Lock all ranges and make sure the Restrainers are
out of sight. I’m sure Gwenna will enlighten us with further details, but for
now, they should have no real clue of what our defences are. They definitely
should not get their hands on any,” he glanced to Sehun. “Especially not our
best defence.”
“Him?” Donghae rasped before scoffing a little. “He’s like a ticking bomb.”
“Which is exactly what we need,” he turned to Jungkook and Yixing. “See to it
that the training ranges and weapon rooms are locked down.”
Nodding their heads, the brothers broke into a jog down the hallway at once.
“Gwenna can’t trust them.” Xiomara muttered, frowning deeply.
“She knows who to trust, Xi,” Mark pressed a hand to Xiomara’s shoulder. “But…
can you and Donghae keep an eye on Gwenna?”
Xiomara snorted. “Sure. But I don’t think any of us have the balls big enough
to confront Kai.”
“I do,” Sehun muttered, blinking his eyes vacantly as Xiomara and Donghae
arched the eyebrows. He had seen the arrogant, haughty, vain and laser-mouthed
Kai, but he had yet to see the scary, nightmarish Kai that everyone was so
scared of. Kai was exactly the kind of teacher Sehun had always wanted to
challenge and rise above. Maybe standing up to him would tame that guy’s pride
a little. “I mean he doesn’t seem… so intimidating.”
“Are you forgetting that I saved your ass from him that night?” Donghae
scoffed.
“No, you saved me from Kris that night,” Sehun pulled his hands out of his
pockets to fold them over his chest. “I don’t recall Kai ever attacking me in
the first place.”
Both Donghae and Mark looked a little bothered as they shared a particularly
dubious glance. “Whatever it is, Sehun, please stick around us and don’t get
too close to him.” Mark advised.
“For a fact we know that Gwenna has her daughter back home. And I’m guessing
she’ll trust Deevana more than any of us.” Donghae’s comment brought a
flustered expression to Xiomara’s face and Sehun shook his head, grinding his
teeth, before snaking an arm around her waist. She looked up to him, flushed.
He could only imagine how Xiomara must feel. She might put on a mask and the
whole Miss Tough Girl show, but Sehun’s brotherly instinct kicked in at that
moment as he realized deep within, she must be scarred and yearning for things
she could never have.
One by one, Sehun began to understand their flaws. Jungkook who had to grow up
as an orphan had his own flaw. Xiomara who grew up with a family was lonely,
pushed away had her own flaw.
“We can’t deny that Dee could have joined Faiion because she wanted to be there
for Shixun,” Mark murmured, turning around to face the door again. “You’ll
never know,” she sighed. “She might have nicer intentions.”
“We can’t afford to play the ‘might’card here, Mark. For god’s sake, can you
just get in there?!”
“I’m gonna sit this one out. Kai was right. I don’t think he’ll be wanting a
fight when he’s outnumbered here. He wouldn’t have brought Dee along for a
fight. Besides, what he and Faiion want is out here. Not in there.” he shot
Sehun an empty look.
“Huh,” he snickered.
“Did I say something funny, Donghae?”
“Nothing. Figures you still have a soft spot for your brother, huh? You’re not
a tad bit angry that he knocked up the bitch your once banged?”
Sehun half-expected Mark to lash out, but it was Xiomara who shoved Donghae
back hard until he knocked the vase on the table down. “Knock it off. Get the
fuck out of here, Donghae,” she growled and Sehun did not miss the purple flare
the sparked between Xiomara’s fingers, but it quickly died.
Donghae bared his teeth for a moment before he shook his head and slammed the
candle holder down. “Suit yourselves.” Spitting, he began to strut away.
“I don’t get why he’s so angry all the time.” Sehun muttered, wrapping an arm
around Xiomara’s shoulders.
“You’ll get used to it,” Mark sighed, rubbing his temples and leaned against
the wall. “We all have.”
Xiomara shrugged Sehun’s arm off her shoulders and glowered at him. “I can
still gut you before you’re blinking.” She hissed and twirled around to walk
away from there. Sehun gaped at her and grimaced.
“I didn’t even… God, you people seriously need to stop acting so tough all the
time. Watch cartoons, drink some hot chocolate, run around in your PJs every
once in a while, laugh a little, watch Spongebob Squarepants for crying out
loud.”
The door sprung open and Sehun jumped a little as Mark pulled himself from the
wall. “And here I thought you’ve grown a pair,” Kai’s remark could have echoed
to all parts of the house and Sehun snapped his lips shut. “Still a snotty
little princess, huh? Only with tighter clothes and a better haircut.” He
pinned Sehun with a judgmental look, sending a jolt down Sehun’s spine. Sehun
stopped breathing for a moment as he tried to scowl.
“Were you the only one without anything better to do at home, Kai?” Mark asked,
smirking.
“Oh, look who’s talking. You run around with a bunch of teenagers all day,
every day. At least I teach for a living, Mark. Not babysit.”
Sehun sniggered. “Don’t buy it, Mark,” he stepped forward and took Mark’s side.
“He does a lousy job at his so-called job. He’s just a big bully with mommy
issues.”
The humour died in Kai’s expression, replaced by exasperation. “You and I both
know I’m not the one with mommy issues, Scrappy-Doo.”
“Kai,” Dee showed up behind him with Gwenna by her side. She curled her hands
around Kai’s arm and clung onto it, staring at Sehun. “Hey, Sehun,” she smiled
the most genuine smile Sehun had seen in a while. “How have you been?”
“Fine, Dee. Better than ever.” Sehun sighed. He doubted that he could ever
bring himself to despise her. Not because she was his sister, but unlike
everyone else, Dee was just this gentle, graceful person. Just like Gwenna. In
contrast, Xiomara really did stand out like a sore thumb. Sehun knew how that
would feel.
Her attention shifted to Mark. “Hi, Mark.” Her greeting was grim, but it seemed
sincere enough.
“Hi, Dee. Gwenna, can I talk to you for a second?”
“Not now. Jule is here,” she said carefully in a monotonous voice. “It’s best
for everyone if we try to get along. Come, Deevana. We will all have a dinner
together tonight. Mark, will you please show Kai his room?” She ushered Dee
towards her room down the hall.
Mark looked frustrated as he faced his brother again. Sehun wondered if he
should just leave them alone. Then Kai shook his head, crossing his arms over
his chest. “It shouldn’t have to be this way, Mark.”
“But it is,” he spat. “We don’t have to talk to each other, Kai. But just tell
me this one thing. Is it your child?”
Kai kept mum for a moment and his eyes darted to Sehun briefly before they
settled back on Mark. “Yes. I don’t think you should have a problem with that.
You abandoned her a long time ago.”
Sehun felt his chest tighten. He should just walk away right now. But he
couldn’t. He stood there, still and stiff, staring at Kai. “Then let me get
this straight. All these years, you had never been interested in her and all of
a sudden, you say that you’re with her and we all find out that she’s
pregnant?”
Kai shrugged. “That’s just how it is.”
Mark sourly nodded his head. “Fine. Just know one thing. The minute I find out
you’re up to something, I will see to it personally that you’re destroyed. Do
you get it? This is my place. Keep your tail curled between your legs.” He
turned on his heel and began to lead the way. The corners of Kai’s lips quirked
into a smug smile.
“Great feeling to be around family, huh, Scrappy?” he winked at Sehun before
treading after Mark.
“What are you doing here?” Sehun asked in a flat tone, quite dejected.
“You’re the one who—”
“No, really, what are you doing here?” he faced Kai with a straight, hard face.
Kai licked his lips and glanced to the flower portrait on the wall. “Why did
you kiss me that night?”
Sehun was choked by the sudden lump in his throat. “What? Answer my question.”
Kai locked his eyes with Sehun’s. “You answer mine first.”
“Why should I?”
Taking a few steps forward, he closed the distance between him and Sehun. He
prodded a finger into Sehun’s chest and slowly dragged it down his sternum
before holding it to Sehun’s midriff. Sehun had to hold his breath in as he
glared at Kai. “Because like you said… I’m a big bully.” His whisper caressed
Sehun’s lips and chin before Kai drew away. Leaving Sehun breathless, he
brushed past him and went after Mark.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
“We need a plan.” Xiomara’s voice boomed into the room as she banged the door
open and strutted in.
“Have you ever heard about the habit of knocking before entering?” Sehun
groaned, fastening the last buttons of his red shirt and rolled the sleeves up
to his elbows.
“You ask your boyfriend to knock before entering you,” she spat and dropped to
sit on the foot of the bed. “Do you like the shirts I got you?”
“Yes, they’re much better than the t-shirts.” He turned to face the mirror and
ran his fingers through his hair to adjust it.
“Now that Gwenna’s perfect daughter’s here, she’s going to be pretty
distracted. I won’t be surprised if you get all attached to Dee as well. Then
everybody just forgets about me and what I did for them.”
Sehun straightened up and met Xiomara’s frown. She wore a less revealing blouse
and it even had sleeves. Her silver hair was still tied into a high ponytail,
but her black boots had faux diamonds. “Hey,” he took his seat next to her and
smiled. “You’re an amazing daughter and a wonderful sister,” he took her hand
into his. “Honestly, I would have gone insane or ended up in a bunch of
Restrainers, trying to escape if it hadn’t been you over here when I woke up
that day. It’s Gwenna’s loss if she couldn’t see what sort of a gem she has for
a daughter. I could not ask for a more awesome sister.”
Xiomara smiled, both with her lips and her eyes. “You mean that?” she asked in
a very low voice.
“I do,” he mirrored her grin. “And I don’t know how I’d ever repay you for
making me look good.”
“Yeah,” she chuckled. “It’ll take you a lifetime to repay me for that,” she
shot up. “Now, I’m gonna keep scheming to find out what their real objectives
are while you powder your bubble butt and meet me downstairs. You’re my date
tonight.”
“Will be my pleasure,” he muttered before he perked up. “Wait, what? Bubble
butt?”
Xiomara stopped by the door and smirked. “You don’t know how good you look from
behind,” she sighed. “Wish I had that.”
Sehun made a crumpled expression. “To seduce Heva?!”
“Oh, you don’t know how many people you’re seducing with that big butt of
yours.”
“Get out. We’re not that close.”
Laughing, Xi disappeared out the door. Then heaving a sigh, Sehun slouched
forward and buried his face in his palms. “Is Xiomara guilty for your new
spunky look?”
Sehun’s head shot up and his eyes popped out when he found Kai at the doorway.
“What?”
Kai licked his lips and stepped inside before shutting the door behind him.
Sehun calmly sat still, pinning Kai down with a subtle scowl. Kai slid his
hands into his jeans’ pockets and Sehun refrained himself from giving too much
attention to the front of the jeans. It was rare to see Kai in anything but
black but he looked ridiculously good in that white long-sleeved, V-neck t-
shirt. The watch on Kai’s left hand only added further zest to his calm look.
Which was totally ironic. Sehun stubbornly kept staring at him, keeping his
cool. “I’m not surprised. She is the hottest chick in here.” He smirked and
Sehun rolled his eyes before coolly rising to his feet and dragged himself to
the mirror.
“She’s my sister, for god’s sake. You’re disgusting,” He murmured, readjusting
his hair at the front. “Besides, you’re married, aren’t you?” he scoffed.
“You always knew I was married. Didn’t stop you from—”
“Look,” he faced Kai. “You’re here because I… want a reconciliation. Between my
mother and father. Honestly, you and Dillan and Kris have no place here. So a
little less ass-sniffing would be nice.” As he turned to the mirror again, Kai
crossed the room and the next thing Sehun knew was Kai harshly grabbing his arm
before he slammed him against the table. The small of Sehun’s back rammed up
the edge of the table and he winced a little.
“You know what I tell Faiion stands. If I say no, then no. So you ought to be a
little more respectful,” his grip almost crushed Sehun’s arm. “You think you
hold all the ties here, huh? Listen, we’re not gonna take you away from here by
force. Hell, if it comes down to it, we’ll accept the reconciliation. But trust
me. You will come running to us on your own soon enough,” he released Sehun’s
arm with a shove. Sehun’s heart constantly kept hammering in his chest with Kai
standing so close to him. He could feel the man’s heat all over his own body.
Kai did not retreat as he kept Sehun pinned against the table. “Fine. You wanna
know if I’m married to Dee. No, I’m not. In fact, I wasn’t even the one who got
her pregnant. But I’m taking the blame because that’s what I do. I take the
fucking blame. All the blame, everyone’s blame,” he snarled. His rage was
subtle, but his frustration was ferocious. “Of course I wasn’t expecting for
that bastard Chanyeol and his girlfriend to fuck things up. Kris never wanted
to hurt you either. We should’ve known Gwenna had her ways of getting her
people into the academy. You have no idea when was the last I had been happy,
when was the last time I had actually wanted something. But I came so close to
it when I kissed you.”
“Kai,” Sehun breathed out, raising a hand to Kai’s chest. “I—”
Kai pulled back immediately and shook his head. “I was with Gwenna and Allis
for a long time. I was here even when Jungkook and Xiomara were born. When you
were born, I was just a kid. It was only some months before you were born that
Faiion and your mother broke up. Your mother doesn’t want to keep you away from
Faiion. She wants to keep you away from Shixun.”
Sehun brain short-circuited for a moment. “What? Wa… what?!”
“That’s way she separated both of you.”
“Kai, what the hell are you talking about?” he started to pant in a shortage of
breath.
Kai blinked and raised his eyebrows.
There was a sudden knock on the door before it was pushed open. “Sehun, are
you—” Chanyeol cut himself short as his eyes darted to Kai. “Never mind.”
“Wait, Chanyeol,” Sehun rasped and tossed Kai a disappointed look before
hastily pulling his shoes on and hurried after Chanyeol. “Chanyeol! Wait.”
Chanyeol did not come to a halt until he was on the staircase. “It’s all right,
Sehun. I don’t wanna know about it.”
“Oh, my god, will you just stop?”
“Sehun, you are expected at the dinner. The minister is also here. So if you
don’t mind, I’d like to get back to scouting the area.”
Sehun didn’t stop him as he hurtled down the stairs and joined Heva and
Xiomara.
“Heva, shall we? Hey, Xiomara.” Chanyeol greeted her, taking Heva’s side.
“Bye, Chanyeol.” Xiomara spat and curled her arm around Sehun’s to haul him
towards the dining hall.
Sehun tried to collect his thoughts together and drew in some deep breaths.
“What’s wrong?” his sister asked, hugging his arm.
Shaking his head, Sehun smiled at her. “Nothing. The minister’s here again?”
“Yeah. He came to drop off some files for her daughter and of course Gwenna had
to invite him and his family for dinner tonight. She wants to show off that
we’re all getting along with Kai and Dee.”
“Remind me to tell you something later.” He whispered as the Minders opened the
doors to the dining hall. Sehun halted in his tracks as he gawked up at the
chandeliers and the intricate engravings on the ceiling. Left breathless, he
scanned the long table in the middle of the room with uncountable number of
chairs. Mrs Gump surely couldn’t have cooked all that food on her own.
“Ah, here’s the superstar!” Philip exclaimed, jolting up from his chair and
spread his arms open. Sehun grimly accepted the embrace and the brutal pats on
his back. “And the beautiful Xiomara.” He smiled, kissing the back of Xiomara’s
hand, much to Xiomara’s dismay.
As soon as Philip returned to his seat, Sehun noticed Xi wiping her hand on her
pants. Only Dee, Donghae and Kai were absent. The doors opened again and Sehun
turned around to see Dee enter the dining hall with Kai by her side.
Pursing his lips and swallowing the lump in his throat, Sehun took his seat
between Jule and Xiomara as Kai and Dee took theirs on either sides of Gwenna.
Sehun shot Jule, Adam and their mother a subtle bow of his head and a smile.
Mark, Yixing and Jungkook were seated at the left end of the table. “I propose
a toast. To a reconciliation.” Philip raised his wineglass and Sehun realized
his glass was filled with apple juice. He definitely did not miss the way Kai
sneered at him.
“Some of us are not allowed to make toast yet.” Sehun remarked and Dee let out
a breath of chuckle before quickly falling silent.
“I thought all that you need to make a toast were bread and a toaster,” Kai
scoffed and mostly everyone joined him in his laughter. Including Xiomara. “To
Sehun, then.” Kai raised his glass and Sehun scowled.
“To Sehun.” Everyone but Sehun, Xiomara and Jungkook lifted their glasses.
“You’d need electricity to get a toaster to work.” Sehun shot back silently,
taking a sip of his sparkling apple juice.
“Whoa, burn.” Xiomara hissed under her breath before she high-fived with Sehun.
It was Sehun’s turn to smirk at Kai.
“Wow. That wasn’t so smart.” Kai shrugged.
“Well, of course. You were his teacher!” Xiomara squawked.
“Damn!” Sehun bumped his fist into hers.
“Xiomara,” Gwenna shot her commanding look. “Now, let us eat.” she said,
breaking the guffaw.
Dinner went on silently for a moment before the minister’s wife spoke. “Ah.
We’ve got something for Xiomara. Adam personally hand-picked it.” she handed
Xiomara a red flat box.
“Oh,” Xiomara blinked blankly before she rose to her full height and accepted
the velvet box. “Thank you.” she resettled in her seat and opened the box. She
could not have expressed her disinterest in the diamond necklace any better.
She flashed a half smile and closed the box before muttering a thanks again.
Sehun looked to Gwenna who suddenly looked disturbed.
“Adam… hand-picked it?” Kai was the one who asked the question, passing Philip
and Adam a sidelong glance as if he were about to murder them.
“Well, Gwenna. Should I just announce it?” Philip asked, grinning from ear to
ear.
“Announce what?” Xiomara rasped. Kai was gripping the wineglass now as he kept
his gaze low and jaw clenched, slumped back against his chair. He tapped the
wineglass with his forefinger as if he were eagerly waiting for something so
that he can smash the wineglass on someone’s head. On the other side of Gwenna,
Dee’s face was pale and she kept her head hung low. Her brown short hair was
hiding half of her face.
“You see, we’ve been discussing this over and over again,” said Philip
cheerfully. Dee raised her head timidly and her eyes straight away darted to
Adam who was smirking at Xiomara. Fuck. “Your mother agrees wholeheartedly and
this is the best way to ensure you always have an alliance with the ministry.
It doesn’t have to be a marriage of convenience. You can get to know each other
and you’ve got some time before you turn 18.”
“What the hell are you blabbering about?!” Xiomara exploded, slamming her palm
on the table and Gwenna hissed at her.
“Xiomara.” She reprimanded her.
“Oh, no, it’s okay. What I mean is that we’ve arranged a marriage between you
and my son, Adam here.” Philip announced and Sehun glanced to Dee who had her
head dropped again.
“What the heck?!” Xiomara shot upright, knocking the chair over.
“Xiomara!” Gwenna snapped.
“Did any of you even bothered to ask my opinion?!”
Kai was beaming now as he calmly took a sip from his wineglass.
“Xi,” Sehun caught her hand, but she furiously pulled it away before she
stormed out of the dining hall. Grunting, Sehun rose to his feet and glared at
Kai. “Can I talk to you for a second, Kai?”
Kai cocked a brow and pointed his forefinger to himself while holding the
wineglass.
“Yes, you. Excuse me,” he tossed the napkin onto the chair and stomped out.
When they were out of the dining hall, Sehun broke into a jog to catch up
Xiomara. “Xi, hold on.” He caught her arm but she shoved him back.
“Will she ever throw you or Dee or Shixun onto someone else’s plate like you’re
some leftover?!” she howled with tears brimming in her eyes.
“Hey, hey, look. You’re not gonna get married to him, okay. I won’t let that
happen.” He cupped her face in his hands, but she pushed his hands away.
“Just leave me alone.” With that, she disappeared up the stairs and exhaling a
loud sigh, Sehun spun around only to meet a very nonchalant Kai.
“It’s him, isn’t it? The child’s father. Dee’s carrying Adam’s child.”
“Wow,” Kai breathed, looking genuinely surprised. “How did you—”
“Oh, please. Neither Dee nor you are that hard to read.”
Kai shrugged. “Well, what’s the plan? Unless she runs away from here or joins
us, she’s not gonna get out of this.”
“Don’t ever think she’ll join you.” Sehun spat and shoved Kai by the chest to
walk past him, but was stopped when Kai grabbed his hand still pressed to his
chest.
“Not everyone gets what they want, Sehun. You need to understand that.” He
released Sehun’s hand on his chest, but Sehun let it linger on it for a while
as his heart steadily beat against his palm.
“You’re right.” He whispered and pulled his hand back. Turning on his heel,
Sehun wiped his jaw as he sauntered back into the dining hall.
“Where is she?” Yixing inquired with obvious concern etched on his face.
Sehun shook his head and groaning, Jungkook jolted up from his seat before he
ran out of the dining hall. “She won’t get married,” he said firmly, looking up
at Gwenna, then Philip. “And that’s it.”
“You don’t get to order and take decisions just yet, my boy.” Philip laughed a
nervous laugh and Sehun shot him a smirk.
“But I will get to one day. And trust me, you’d want me on your side more than
you’d want Xi. It’s about politics anyway, right?” he turned his head halfway
around to see Kai standing by the doors. Then sighing, he faced Philip again.
“So how about this proposal? I’ll marry your daughter.”
Philip’s face turned gravely white for a moment as everyone left at the table
gaped at him. “Are you… serious?”
“I am dead serious, Mr Minister,” he smiled. “I will marry Jule in a year.
Xiomara’s off the table.”
Philip and his wife shot to their feet. “This is wonderful!”
Sehun clenched his eyes momentarily before turning around. “Can you come with
me?” he whispered to Kai as he exited the dining hall.
“Why? You just got engaged.” Kai accused in a very critical tone although he
followed him.
“I need to get heavily drunk and punch something.”
***** “Wouldn’t even dream of it.” *****
“He’s not allowed in here.” The Minder blocked the mouth of the hallway,
passing Kai a hostile glare. Sehun glanced back over his shoulder and saw Kai
shrug nonchalantly.
“For god’s sakes, we’re going to the kitchen. He’s not going to sabotage some
cucumbers and tomatoes.” Sehun sighed.
“Welllll…” Kai chimed and Sehun shot him a scowl. “Okay, okay. You have my
word. Your cucumbers and tomatoes are safe from me.”
“Don’t worry. He’s not gonna give any of us any problem. Step aside.”
The Minder stood his ground for a moment before he bowed his head to Sehun and
made way for them pass. “You have a great trust in me and my self-restraint.”
Sehun scoffed. “Not for a penny,” he strutted into the kitchen and scanned it,
glancing around looking for Mrs Gump. “This way. I’ve seen Mrs Gump pull out a
couple of beer bottles from here.” He pointed at the storage closet and hurried
to open the door.
“Okay. A) Mrs Gump is still alive? B) Should I be concerned about the fact that
you said you saw her pulling out a couple of beer bottles?”
“Oh, my god. She used them to make some cheese dip and sausages.” He scowled
back at Kai and rolled his eyes, shaking his head. He stared into the darkness
and Sehun’s hand fumbled on the wall to find the switch.
“Do you know how tight your pants look from back here?”
Sehun froze in place as his finger flicked the switch and the light bulb
flashed on. Sucking in a shaky breath, he fought the urge to turn around and
face Kai because he was cocksure that Kai had his arms crossed and lips quirked
into a cocky smirk. “I’m not in the right mood.” Ignoring the stocked shelves,
he marched straight to the refrigerator at the end. He wondered if Kai was even
a tad bit bothered by the fact that Sehun just got himself engaged. Whatever it
was, he was not going to ask.
“I’m not sure you’re in the right mind.”
“Okay,” Sehun spun around after grabbing four beer bottles and shoved them into
Kai’s chest. “I’m trying to do something for my sister.” He turned back to the
refrigerator and yanked out two more bottles.
“Yeah, you’re trying to be the substitute sacrificial goat.”
“You took the blame for Dee’s pregnancy! You of all people should understand
everything about being the bloody substitute sacrificial goat.” Sehun hissed
under his breath and Kai stared at him, tight-lipped. Then pausing for a
moment, he gaped at Kai in disbelief. “And you told me about it,” he whispered,
blinking vacantly. “You told me about it… Why would you tell me about it?”
Kai shook his head. “Have you ever gotten drunk before?”
“No. But don’t change the topic.”
“You really want to hit the spot?” Kai hugged the beer bottles in one arm and
extended a hand to the top of the shelf. “Here. This will do you more good.”
Sehun scrutinized the bottle, arching a brow. “Tequila?”
“You know what they say. One tequila. Two tequila. Three tequila. Floor! Tres
Generaciones. It’s good.”
“Good. I need that.” Sehun snatched the tequila bottle and the shoved past Kai.
“Why have you never gotten drunk before? Never even tasted alcohol?”
Sehun kept his pace fast as he leapt up the stairs leading to floor of his
room. “I’ll lose control over my Flair.”
“Hm. You mean you’ll throw in a thunder or a hurricane here and there when
you’re high. Is that why you’re bringing me along to drink with you?”
Sehun came to halt at the top of the stairs and faced Kai with a stifled smile.
“Maybe,” Shrugging, he proceeded to his room. He stopped before the door and
licked his lips, drawing in a deep breath. “What am I doing?” he uttered under
his breath.
“Attempting underage drinking?”
“Oh, and you’re endorsing underage drinking?” he shook the bottle of tequila in
Kai’s face. “Look. Can you please not be my annoying teacher tonight? I need to
just… let go.”
Kai grinned. “Of course. Sure. We’re celebrating your engagement.”
“Stop. If it’ll give Xi some peace, I’m glad I did it. I did both my sisters a
favour.”
“If you think you’re doing Dee a favour, you’re wrong. Adam the Prick is not
going to take any responsibility and Dee is better off without him.”
“You don’t get to decide that for her,” Sehun shoved the door open and entered
his room before dropping the bottles on the bed. “Okay.” He exhaled and flumped
on the edge of the bed as Kai closed the door.
“I don’t know how you think marrying the minister’s daughter is gonna bode well
for you.”
“I just need time, okay?” he grabbed the bottle of tequila, sucking in some
deep breaths. “I’m not dumb. I can’t get married right away. The minister has
influences. Gwenna listens to him, so I’m guessing he’s pretty cardinal here.”
“He could have us sold at the ministry and the Pootles onto us. Why do you
think I haven’t broken that bastard Adam’s face yet, huh? Philip’s trying to
kiss up to Gwenna’s ass because she has the larger proportion of the Ten.”
Sehun uncapped the bottle and nodded. “If this reconciliation goes according to
plan, Faiion and Gwenna will have an alliance, then Philip would be glad to
marry Adam off to Dee. He just needs his influence in this family. I’m off the
hook.”
“Or… we have another option.” Kai took his seat on the chaise lounge.
The reek of the tequila pinched Sehun’s nose and several other senses. Gagging
at the sharp stench a little, he curtly bowed his head. “Strangle him like a
pig.”
“No,” Kai grimaced. “Where does this sudden aggression come from? Faiion will
never agree to marry his daughter to that bum, even if she’s carrying his
child. Unlike Gwenna, trust me, Faiion cares about his children. If he finds
out about what sort of an ass that Adam is, he will rip his head off and put it
on a spike for display.”
“Well, there you go. That’s where my aggression comes from. You know what? I’m
not scheming shit with you. You’re my enemy.” He glanced down to the alcohol
again.
“You really think drinking with your enemy is the smartest idea you’ve had?”
Sehun did not know why he was here in this room with Kai surrounded by bottles
of alcohol. He wiped his dry eyes, sighing. “Just sit there. Quietly. I’m gonna
start drinking. And don’t judge.” He gasped in several nervous breaths before
taking a gulp of the tequila.
“Wouldn’t even dream of it.”
 
 
 
His mouth was sore. The tequila that layered the walls of his throat burned and
Sehun’s eyes swivelling towards the back of his head in a grieving sense of a
pounding in his head. His eyelids were sagging as his insides jostled wildly.
“I hate this.” He blurted out in a whirly whisper. Each gulp made the room spin
faster. His stomach heaved in a sickly way. But it felt good. It felt good. The
feeling of being anaesthetized made him fall in love with the silence. He lost
track of how many minutes or hours or flipping nights had passed. He lazily
glanced over to Kai who was sitting on the floor, loosely hugging his knees as
he watched Sehun with nonchalant intent. The bed was extra soft under his butt.
Must be softer than that hard floor Kai was sitting on with a half empty beer
bottle by his side. He wanted to bounce on the bed, but was too lazy to do so.
“Okay. Maybe go easy on the tequila.” Kai muttered, vacantly staring at Sehun
when he lifted the bottle again.
“Don’t tell me what to do. Stop being so bossy. You don’t control everybody’s
life. Big bully,” He took a very tiny sip of the devil’s drink. Wincing hard at
the strong burn, he pointed a finger to Kai. “You’re a shit at being nice.”
“Uh-huh. You’re telling me?” he scoffed. “Right now, I think hurricane would be
a preferable option.”
Sehun sprawled himself across the bed and threw his arms over the edge of the
bed, gripping the bottle in one hand. “Why, Kai? Why is everyone so… scared of
you when you don’t intimidate me one bit?”
“I don’t know why you’re so bold. And trust me, I’ve never left anyone standing
after talking to me the way you talk to me,” he sighed. “You’re just a… a
spoiled little… brat.”
A sheepish grin took form on Sehun’s rubbery lips. “You, mister, like this
spoiled little brat.” He whined, pointing the finger at Kai again.
“Don’t push your luck, kid.” He scoffed, smirking a little and gulped down a
mouthful of his beer.
“Tell me about my father.” He mumbled, jutting out his lower lip.
“He’s… a nice man.”
“How nice?”
“Nicer than your mother.”
“Stop. You don’t know Gwenna.”
“I do, Sehun. I really do, okay? I was with her until I was 17.”
Sehun blinked. “What happened after 17?”
It took Kai a moment to reply. “I…” he exhaled a loud breath. “I switched
sides.”
“You abandoned her and chose to side with Faiion.”
“I didn’t abandon her,” he said in a low growl. “You don’t know anything about
what I went through.” He tilted his head back and heaved a miserable sigh
before clenching his eyes.
“I couldn’t think of a black past that you could have suffered so bad that you
turned out to be such an ass.”
“Shixun was brought away,” he started. “Dee and I were the only one who was
still on Gwenna’s side. Mother joined Faiion and Kris was just a child. I was
supposed to… fight together with Dee, Donghae, Yixing and Mark to get Shixun
back. Faiion… he had more Minders on his side. We were outnumbered but Faiion
never wanted to hurt any of us. Allis died in the fight.” His voice completely
faltered at the end.
“Then why did you… join my father?”
Kai’s expression turned cold and hard. “I was studying at FLAC that time. I…”
he smiled to himself a little. “I was young. I was reckless. I was just that…
arrogant rogue,” he snorted. “I never cared much for principles or manners. I
bullied a lot kids. A lot. Sometimes they had to jump around like frogs,
sometimes act monkey. That sort of stuff. Then one day, uh… my friends and I
got a hold on this new boy in school. Made him eat a whole rhubarb pie and then
roll on the grass like a dog,” he chuckled now and Sehun automatically found
himself smiling. “Turned out he wasn’t a new student. He was just the warden’s
son who came by to drop his dad’s stuff. He was… very timid. Scared. Shy. He
wasn’t a Flairer,” the humour died on his face. “Very innocent. Completely
unlike me. The total opposite of everything I was. The second time we met, he
freaked out a little when he saw my hand was bleeding. He didn’t know I heal
fast and it was just a training. It was hilarious, but even if I’d bullied him…
he just…” he trailed off, shaking his head. “It just happened and that was the
only time I had ever been in love. He loved me the way even my mother didn’t.
He was my… family. But I was one of the Ten and he wasn’t allowed to be with
me. I was supposed to run away with him the night Shixun was taken away. Gwenna
stopped me. By breaking me.”
Sehun sat up and lifelessly stared at Kai in disbelief. His heart silently
cried in his chest as his eyes brimmed with tears. “She… killed him?” his voice
barely left him.
“Yeah,” he murmured. “She wasn’t gonna have one of the Ten abandon everything
for a Pootle. And she needed me here to protect Shixun.”
Wow. This Shixun was becoming more and more interesting by the day. “Kai… I’m
so sorry. I had no idea.”
“Oh, save it,” he sighed. “She justifies it by saying that she did it for my
own good. No. She did it for herown good. I joined my mother and Faiion. Dee
shortly joined us as well. And you’re siding with Gwenna who cares about
nothing but her own welfare.”
“Faiion wants to rule the world,” he spat. “Gwenna is trying to stop him.”
“You still don’t get it, do you? Sehun, this feud is between Gwenna and Faiion.
She doesn’t want Faiion to have more power than herself. Ah, forget about it.
You’re stewed as a goat. You’ll understand when you see who the good guys and
who the bad guys are.”
Sehun let out a bestial groan and collapsed back onto the bed, on his back. He
threw his head over the edge and let it hang upside down. He stared at Kai.
“Did you love him a lot?”
“Drop it.” he snapped.
“Why are you telling me all this stuff, Kai?” his blood flowed nether and his
vision started to get a little hazy. Jaded, he kept his eyes on Kai who looked
like he was sitting on the ceiling. Sehun almost laughed at the crazy thought.
He had never had his head hanging upside down like this and it was one of most
fun things he had done! “You told me about Dee’s pregnancy. You told me about
your past. Do you trust me with your secrets? Why?”
Kai kept his lips pursed for a stretch. “I don’t know,” he muttered after a
while. “I don’t why I just… why I tell you everything.”
“You’re not here to sabotage anyone, are you?”
“No, Sehun. Your father is longing to see you. Kris and I never would have hurt
you. Everything was going according to plan until Heva and Chanyeol botched it
up. I hate to admit this, but you’re… you’re pretty smart. If you’ve gotten
Gwenna to agree to this reconciliation, you’ve done a good job.”
“I doubt it,” He let out, raising his knees, spreading his legs apart. “But I
should cherish this moment. You paying me a compliment has to be one of the
rarest things in this world. All that you ever do is insult me, call me names,
and point out how pathetic I am. Now I know why you’re never interested in me.
You just can’t move on, can you? I sort of envy that guy.”
Kai fell dead silent and Sehun realized he had overstepped. A dull buzz in his
head entertained Sehun for a minute. He wanted it to stop, but it was
intoxicating at the same time. There was a sudden rush of heat in his body and
he felt the sides of his neck burn along with his ears. It was hot. His hand on
its own drew up his abdomen and chest, and unbuttoned the top two buttons of
his shirt. He needed some air.
Then he stared at Kai, upside down, rise to his feet. Every short breath Sehun
gasped in silently became shorter and shorter for every step Kai took, edging
closer to him. The acceleration of his heart-rate screamed what his body
wanted. To just release, to just be free and to be gripped all at the same
time.
Dropping to his knees right before Sehun’s hanging head, Kai yanked his t-
shirt’s sleeves up to his elbows before his hot palms cupped the sides of
Sehun’s face. Sehun’s mind was instantly put to a frenzy of sparks, but he
could not do anything about it. He stared, wide-eyed and hanging upside down as
his hand was pressed to the mattress, fisting the bedsheet while the other
gripped the bottle’s neck. Blood stirred in his nether regions as Kai bowed his
head and leaned in. Kai’s thumbs were softly touching Sehun’s jaw on both
sides. His head swirled and Sehun pulled his eyes shut as he felt Kai’s lower
lip brush the seam of his lips. The tip of Kai’s nose was brushing Sehun’s chin
just as Sehun’s brushed Kai’s chin. Kai pulled back a little and his trembling
breath grazed Sehun’s lips before he leaned in again. When he delicately kissed
his bottom lip, Sehun’s brain was on fire. The warmth surged through his entire
body. He felt like a novice. He hadn’t even kissed anyone properly before and
he was kissing someone upside down?! Then Kai shifted to kiss his upper lip,
tongue gently caressing the lower, demanding access. Sehun easily gave in to
him and the tips of their tongues met in a languid touch. Lost in a heady
trance of passion, Sehun let out a subtle moan when Kai caught his lower lip
between his teeth and pulled it gently before releasing it, saliva-slicked. Kai
tilted his head to the side and kissed him full on mouth now. Sehun felt a
smouldering heat within him as Kai’s tongue delved in his mouth, savouring
every part of it.
Sehun kissed him back and their lips moved in perfect sync. He grew tender
under Kai’s touch and his lips began to throb, aching for more. Kai released
one side of his face and slid it up Sehun’s neck and chest before he unbuttoned
the rest of Sehun’s shirt. He felt a pang to his heart when Kai pulled away,
breaking the flaming hot kiss. Then he gently tore the tequila bottle away from
Sehun’s hand. The sound of their ragged breaths filled the silence in the room
as Sehun’s bare chest heaved. Kai shifted a little to Sehun’s side before Sehun
felt his warm breath on his collarbones. Only a simple brush of Kai’s lips on
his collarbones, sternum, midriff, left Sehun completely breathless and dazed.
Sehun clutched at the bedsheet as Kai’s tongue circled on his abs, kissing them
softly, all the way down to Sehun’s navel with a knee on the edge of the bed.
“Uh…” Sehun gasped when he felt something cold and fluid fill his navel, and
perked his head up to see Kai pouring the tequila into his navel in drips. Any
tighter, Sehun might just come in his pants. He brought his hand to the back of
Kai’s neck and lightly clenched Kai’s hair by the nape. A bead of the tequila
trickled down the side of Sehun’s waist and Kai pressed his lips to it before
he tongued all the way up to Sehun’s navel, licking the trail of tequila. Sehun
gave in altogether. He didn’t care what was happening and how it was
happening—he just wanted it to happen. Kai kept his eyes on Sehun as he slid
his tongue into his narrow navel. Biting his lower lip, Sehun suppressed a moan
and clenched his eyes, inclining his head back to hang over the bed. Kai sucked
and licked the alcohol from his navel, sloppily kissing all over it as Sehun
stroked the back of his head, clenching and releasing his hair.
Then it all just abruptly stopped. When Sehun cracked his eyes open, Kai was
already off the bed. “Wait,” Sehun knew he sounded a little whiny. “Where are
you… going?”
“You’re drunk. Get some sleep.”
“Leave the booze.” Sehun groaned, trying to sit up but only dropped back to the
bed.
“Good night, princess.”
***** “A thanks would be nice, though.” *****
The aching in his skull ebbed like a tide flowing out to the sea, but the pain
remained, expanding like a balloon under his cranium. The waves of biliousness
stirred within him like altitude sickness. He felt like he might throw up just
by standing. His head screamed, pounding in every corner, but he clenched his
jaw, gritting his teeth as he tried to hold the screams in. The most he could
do was grunt a little whenever he exhausted a muscle or two trying to catch up
with Donghae.
“Could you fucking keep up?” Donghae groaned on the other end of the
ridiculously huge ballroom.
“Sure. Sure.” Sehun murmured beneath his tongue and dragged his feet back to
the centre of the room.
“Sehun, it’s like we’re doing this over and over again,” Yixing said in a much
calmer tone, but with the same disappointment. “There’s no progress. I need you
to do what you did yesterday. Kick his skinny little ass.” He jerked his hand
in Donghae’s direction.
Sehun heaved a sigh and rolled his head, trying to pop a joint. Of all days,
Mark had to be absent today when Sehun was at his worst. He was lucky that the
dark circles beneath his eyes were not showing too prominent and neither Yixing
nor Donghae had picked out that he was silently suffering from a hangover. This
morning when he woke up to the sound of Yixing’s fist pounding on the door, he
found himself in a mess of unopened beer bottles which he stashed in the
wardrobe and a mess in his pants—half-dried, half-sticky, half-embarrassed.
Sehun had no idea when that happened or if it were due to a wet dream which he
couldn’t recall, but Kai definitely had something to do with it. Speaking of
Kai, Sehun woke up with everything that Kai had said and done to him last night
intact to memories and he really wished he did not remember any of it. How was
he ever going to face Kai again? Worse, he should never ever face Chanyeol
again. He had no idea how he was going to avoid either of them because Chanyeol
lived in this place and Kai… well, Sehun wanted to see him more than he would
like to admit.
“Can we take a break?” he let out in a raspy breath and Yixing cocked a brow.
“We took a break ten minutes ago, Sehun. What’s wrong with you? Are you not
feeling well?”
“No, no. I’m… fine.” Sehun clenched and flashed his eyes open again, sucking in
a deep breath.
“Well. Will you look at this,” a short snort followed a delicate chime of
mockery and Sehun dropped his hands to his sides, giving up on surrounding
Donghae with a sandstorm and Yixing with a heatwave for the nth time. That was
what they had been straining him to do since morning and all that Sehun wanted
to do right now was crash the bed and sleep for days. Jule entered the
ballroom, holding a folder in her hands like an office lady. She was clad in a
beige pants and a white blouse which elegantly showcased her voluptuous curves.
Her black hair was braided and her full lips were painted red. Unlike Dee who
was petite and small-sized and Xiomara who was tall and lean, Jule was the
perfect example of an exotic bombshell—tall, not particularly skinny, busty and
definitely beautiful. Just like her brother, Jule was also sun-kissed, very
beautifully tanned. She was a woman to drool over, yes. But there was a better
chance of Sehun drooling over the middle-aged Minder he walked by this morning
than drooling over her. “Working hard, boys?”
“Oh, yes.” Yixing cooed, crossing his arms over his chest as if to flex his
biceps. The corners of his lips quirked into a cocky smile which Jule
completely ignored as her attention reverted to Sehun.
“You do know that this is all futile, right?” she scoffed and Sehun started
toward her.
“What do you mean futile?” he demanded.
“You know. Pointless.” She shrugged.
“I know what futile means. This is just practice,” he elaborated. “For me to
have better focus on my Flair.”
“Precisely. It’s futile,” she gracefully moved towards the piano while
clutching the folder at the back. “Your Flair doesn’t work like that.”
“What?”
“Okay, enough with the mumbo jumbo,” Yixing interrupted as he leaned towards
Jule with his sheepish grin. “Say, Jule. Are you free tonight? Maybe we could…
I don’t know, get ice-cream or something?”
Jule rolled her eyes and faced Sehun again, recoiling from Yixing. “Your Flair
is destructive. It will only work at its finest when you have destructive
intentions.”
It took Sehun a moment to register that information in his agonizing brain.
“What do you mean by that?” he asked, although he was had heard her clearly.
Jule stopped right before him and smiled a seductive smile.
“I mean to say that unless you want to destroy something or someone, you will
never have full control of your Flair.”
“And how do you know that?” Donghae snapped, scowling at her from a distance.
Jule gave Sehun another shrug. “That’s how the circle of Recherchés works,” her
gloating smirk sent a shudder down Sehun’s spine. “As far as I’m concerned,
Dee’s Flair, which is Telepathic Paralysis only works effectively when she
wants to destroy someone. Shixun’s Flair’s the same. I don’t see why you’re any
different than your siblings.”
“Does Gwenna know this?” Donghae asked with a frown etched on his brows.
“She does, I suppose. Is there anything that Gwenna doesn’t know?” she snorted.
“Have you figured out what your side-effect Flair is?”
“He doesn’t have one.” Yixing butted in again.
“Oh, that’s unlikely. How are these fools training you again?”
Sehun couldn’t tell if she liked him or not. But it was eerily frightening that
she had not mentioned anything about his impromptu proposal from last night.
“Hold up. What’s a side-effect Flair?!” he rasped, completely bemused.
“Okay, one, it’s not called the side-effect Flair,” said Yixing, a little
annoyed. “And two, not everyone has it.”
“Well,” Jule turned to face him with a mocking surprised expression. “Pardon me
if I’m wrong in the future, but Dee has one. Shixun has one. Gwenna and Faiion
both have one. And so does Kai.”
“I’m still lost.” Sehun dropped to sit on the step of the podium.
“Jule, don’t you have elsewhere to be?” Donghae hissed.
“Not really,” she sighed. “I am assigned to keep a tab on everyone in here and
that includes all three of you. Especially,” she turned to Sehun and lightly
bit her lower lip. “Sehun.”
“Keep a tab on us?” Yixing blinked blankly.
“Yes. To make sure that you aren’t planning anything that the ministry could
not allow and to ensure all activities take place in accordance to the law.
Therefore, Sehun. You will have to be extra cautious to not to cause a
trouble.”
“Like I’m the one causing all the troubles in this house,” Sehun scoffed,
rubbing his temples. “Okay. Can we go back to this side-effect Flair thing?
What is that?”
“It’s like… Kai’s is superhuman agility.”
“That’s not his main Flair?!” Sehun gaped for a moment. “So Darkness Dimension
is?”
“Yes. So Dee’s is Poison Claws. It’s basically sort of like a physical Flair.
So that when you can’t concentrate, you can use these Flairs. What are these
kids teaching you?” she shot Yixing and Donghae an insulting glance. “At your
welcome party, there will be some people from the ministry and many of Gwenna’s
friends. It’s important that you’re beaten into shape before at least that. You
obviously need a new teacher.”
“I agree,” Sehun scowled at Yixing and Donghae. He was not sure if they had
been completely unaware of all this or if they were just hiding from him all
this while. By the look of their faces, it was probably the former. “I don’t
think I have any… physical Flair. It’s just controlling weather.”
“I guess you’ll figure it out with more training. But definitely not with these
guys.”
“Hey!” Yixing yapped. “You can’t just walk in here, okay? This is a private
session.”
“Oh,” she faked a pout and pulled a printed sheet from the folder. “Actually… I
can,” She handed Yixing the paper and turned to Sehun again. “If you’d like,
Sehun, I would be glad to guide you and tutor you. We don’t exactly have to be
‘work buddies’. I will have professional tutors come over and I can walk you
through everything that you need and want to know. It is important that you are
ready to take over all matters in this place and within the Six before your
coronation. Therefore, I would strongly advise that you don’t wag your tail to
everything that these guys tell you. They’re not the boss here anymore, Sehun.
You are.”
There was a sincerity in her smile. She was not the bad guy. Maybe Adam might
be a prick, but his sister was definitely a charming woman who had her own
rogue ways of dealing with things. Perhaps Sehun might just drool over her
sassy attitude. “And you… happen to know everything about everyone?”
“Everything that is recorded at the ministry. Which is everything.”
Sehun nodded his head, plunging his tongue into the inside of his cheek. “I
would really appreciate some details on my family background.”
“Sehun, if your mother wants you to know those things, she will tell you
herself.” Donghae spat, frowning even harder than before.
“My mother is like the freaking Queen of England and I can’t see her unless I
fix an appointment a month earlier. So,” he lifted his shoulders casually and
rose to his feet. “Uh… Jule. Can I talk to you for a second?”
“Of course.” she smiled, much more relaxed than before as Sehun ushered her out
of the ballroom.
“Where are you going?!” Donghae squawked.
“Oh. You’re all fired. Class dismissed,” Jule chimed, beaming conceitedly and
Sehun helplessly grinned to himself. Once they were out in the hallway, Jule
exhaled a breath of laughter. “Underage drinking is not advisable.”
Sehun shot a sharp glance before quickly looking away so that she would not
catch his dark circles. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He blurted
out and Jule chuckled a little.
“A thanks would be nice, though.”
“For what?”
“For saving you from them.”
“Oh… Thanks. But… what you said was all true, right?”
“Yes, of course,” she smiled. “I’m surprised you don’t know all those things.
At least someone ought to have enlightened you about your own self.”
“Well, let’s just say I’m not exactly their priority.”
She caught Sehun’s arm and hauled him to a stop. “Trust me. You aretheir
priority. But if they’re not telling you all this stuff, they are probably
doing it on purpose.”
Sehun pursed his lips moment, digesting what she had said. “I believe you.
Gwenna is like one of the shadiest people I’ve come across. Too dodgy.” His
mind was cast back to the things Kai had told him last night. About his lover
from his young years who was murdered by Gwenna’s men when they were about to
run away together. It came as no surprise to him when his heart swelled at that
moment. He envied that boy who had so easily won Kai’s heart. Judging from what
Kai had said, the boy must have been shy, gentle and kind. Sehun was not shy in
most occasions, he was not gentle and he definitely did not like sharing his
chocolate bar with that poor skinny kid in the playground when he was five! For
crying out loud, Kai’s former lover freaked out when his bully’s hand got hurt.
Sehun probably would have chopped that hand off.
“Sehun,” Jule called when Sehun began to space out. “Last night… at the dinner…
you really didn’t have to.”
“I have my reasons, Jule,” Sehun muttered. “But… you can refuse. You don’t have
to do this for your father or work.”
She fell silent for a moment. “We don’t even know each other.”
“I know.” He exhaled tiredly.
“But… I’m willing to give this a go if you are.”
Sehun felt his stomach knot. What was he doing? He could not lead her on like
this. “Jule… The truth is—”
“No. Let’s try and be friends first.” She stuck her hand out and Sehun probed
it for a second.
“Honestly,” he smirked, taking her firm hand. “You’re not half as bad as I
thought you’d be.”
“Wow. How bad did you think I was?” she chortled.
“Pretty bad. You know, the subplot villain bad.”
“Oh, my god.” Her laughter was hearty, but soft. Sehun seriously needed to stop
judging people so fast.
“Jesus fucking Christ!” Xiomara’s yawp reverberated through the hallway and
Sehun spun around, but before he even caught the sight of her, he felt her warm
palm strike across a side of his face. Sehun took the blow to his cheek with a
silent curse and a groan.
“Okay. I’ll see you at lunch, then.” Jule muttered and excused herself at once.
“What the hell, Xi?!” he snarled, rubbing his jaw as his already heavy head
spun even harder.
“What the hell?! What the hell?! What the fuck did you do?!” she shoved Sehun
back and raised her fist to punch Sehun in the face.
“Xi!” he caught the fist and Xiomara threw her other fist at him before he
gripped both her wrists.
“Are you mad?! Are you out of your mind?!” she squalled with red cheeks and
bloodshot eyes. “Why would you do that, huh?!” she belligerently fought back,
trying to free her wrists.
“Xi, stop it!” he gasped, staggering a couple of steps back when Xiomara thrust
him. He tightened his grips around her wrists and Sehun half expected her to
knee him in the guts, but instead, she gave her fight up out of the sudden and
abruptly launched herself onto Sehun. Panting like a wild animal, Xiomara
melted against her brother as she wrapped her arms around his body. Blinking
blankly, Sehun curled his arms around his sister’s bony shoulders and waited
for her to say something. But she just buried her face into Sehun’s chest and
gasped for air. “Uh…” he glanced around them and swallowed. What should he do?
No one had ever hugged him like this before. Especially not a sister.
Then she brought her head up and met Sehun’s eyes. “Did you do that for me?”
she whispered.
“Oh. So you… heard about it?”
“Why would you do that?” she panted, blinking the tears in her eyes away. “I
didn’t ask you to do that.”
“You deserve something nice, Xi.” He smiled and cupped her face.
“Then buy me the Tiarax special edition rider gloves. Don’t get married to a
woman who’s like five years older than you!”
“Hey,” he swiped his thumbs over her protruding cheekbones. “Why don’t you just
appreciate it, huh? I didn’t do it expecting anything in return. You’re my
sister. My first family who accepted me.”
She smiled and shoved Sehun back by the chest before wiping the corner of her
eye with the back of her hand. “Don’t talk about this to anyone. Or I’ll shove
a broomstick down your throat.”
“Hm,” Sehun nodded, sliding his hands into the back pockets of his ripped
jeans. “Although, was that slap really necessary?” he scrubbed his cheek,
wincing hard.
“You deserved it. How could you, Sehun? I surely wouldn’t have done something
like that for you. Actually, I might have. I’d go for Jule, too. But that’s not
the point. Sehun, I’m not that worthy. I’m not even that pretty. Nobody cares.
I can be the leftover. But not you.”
“Stop it, okay?” he said gently and crooked an arm around her neck as if to
manhandle her. He dragged her towards the stairs.
“Gwenna’s mad as a cow. She was not expecting for you to do that. No one was!”
“Well, guess I’m in charge now.”
“I don’t want you to do this, Sehun.” she came to a halt and frowned at her
brother.
“I want to do this, okay, Xi? I know what I’m doing.”
“Wow. You’re really taking this paying back for the makeover thing seriously,
aren’t you?”
Sehun let out a laugh. “Hey… Um,” he glanced back to check no one was there.
“Do you know anything about the fight when our brother Shixun was taken away by
Faiion?”
“Oh, of course. I was probably sucking my binky at home, crawling around in my
diapers.”
Sehun rolled his eyes. “No. I mean you wouldn’t happen to have heard about it
or something? Kai and Dee joined Faiion after that.”
“Who told you all that?”
“Hmm…” he gnawed on his lower lip, scratching the back of his head.
“Wait a second. Why are you… Oh, my god, you’re drunk!”
“Shhh!” he clasped his hand over her mouth before she shoved his hand off.
“Why the hell did you get drunk without me?!”
“I don’t know. Because you asked me to leave you alone? Anyway, come on. Help
me with something. I wanna find out about Shixun and Faiion and nobody’s
telling me anything. I wanna ask Jule, but I’m afraid she’ll report to Gwenna.”
“Why do you wanna know about Shixun and Faiion?”
“Because they’re the only ones I haven’t met and they’re the ones who are most
interesting here.”
“Ouch, thanks,” she shook her head. “But Gwenna told us to not to talk about
any of this.”
“Come on. Please?”
Xiomara sighed. “Bat your eyes and shake your butt for me, then twerk and I’ll
show you the Recherché journal.”
“What? Recherché journal?”
“There’s no such thing as the Recherché journal,” Sehun jumped and twirled
around with his heart at his throat when Kai spoke, creeping up behind him
without a single sound. Like a shadow. “She’s pulling your leg.”
Xiomara shrugged and raised her palms in defence when Sehun scowled at her.
“Hey, I just wanna see that butt twerk,” she turned to Kai. “I know you wanna,
too.”
“I don’t know what twerk is.” Kai admitted.
“Urgh! Old people.”
Sehun calmed his heart as he averted his gaze from Kai and his stinging smirk.
Everywhere Kai’s gaze landed on his body burned like he was touched by a hot
iron. Act cool, Sehun. Act cool. “I’m not that old, okay?”
“Are you kidding me?! You must be at least 30 years older than me!”
“Do you think I’m nearly 50 years old?” Kai blinked in shock and Xiomara
provoked him with a shrug.
“You look like it.”
“Go and watch Dora the Explorer, kid.” Kai ruffled the top of Xiomara’s head
and she retaliated by slapping his hand off her head.
“I’ll watch what I want to watch, grandpa. But there really is a logbook of all
Flairs and Flairers in the library. Well, all the Flairers that were registered
before the ministry took over.”
“You guys keep talking,” Sehun blurted out and turned on his heel. “I’m gonna
get some aspirin, then go find that logbook.” He was yanked to a stop when his
wrist was grabbed by a strong hand and he turned around to glare at Kai. They
froze for a stretch, staring into each other’s eyes.Please don’t remember.
Please don’t remember. Sehun mentally chanted.
“You were pretty wasted last night.”
Darn it.
“Holy shit! You got drunk with him?!” Xiomara yapped.
Sehun quickly denied. “No! I don’t know what he’s talking about. So are we
gonna go get the logbook or not?” he started towards the staircase that led up
to the floor above. Xiomara jogged behind him to catch up and Kai calmly tagged
along.
“Oh, really? So you don’t remember a thing?” Kai asked, falling behind.
“Nope. I still don’t know what you’re talking about ‘cause I did not drink with
you.”
“So you did drink.” Xiomara groaned.
When Kai quickly caught up to his side, Sehun noticed the smirk etched on Kai’s
face. “So you don’t remember me telling you about my past?”
“Nope.”
“You don’t remember you telling me that I’m not a nice person?”
“Nope.”
“So you don’t remember me drinking the tequila from your navel.”
“Oh, my dear sweet ox!” Xiomara gasped and Sehun leapt up the stairs with blood
pounding in his ears. “You and…” she gaped at Kai. “What the… How? When did
this happen? How did I not see thing coming? I swear to god I’m usually great
with gut feeling. Sehun!”
“He’s lying” Sehun muttered. “I don’t know what he’s talking about. So which
way’s the library?”
“I knew you were hiding something!”
“Xi, did you know that I could have like an extra Flair? Like that dude has
superhuman agility.” He jerked his thumb in Kai’s direction.
“That ‘dude’?” Kai scoffed. “Well, that dude had his tongue down your throat
last night.”
“I think I’m gonna throw up,” Xiomara faked a gag. “You’re married to Dee!”
“Shockers, he isn’t,” Sehun spat. “They’re faking it.”
“Sounds like your sex life, Scrappy.” Kai laughed and Xiomara giggled with him.
“I need a breather,” she hurried to keep up with Sehun’s long and hasty
strides. “Time out! Is he the one who told you about Shixun and Faiion and the
fight?”
“Ah. So you do remember.” Kai announced and Sehun almost bit his tongue off.
“This way.” Xiomara started to lead the way with a perplexed maze plastered to
her face.
Sehun came to a halt and held Kai back with his hands pressed to Kai’s chest.
“Why don’t I have another Flair?”
“Be thankful. Not all sub-Flairs are an advantage. I’m guessing Jule told you
about that.”
“Yes. I have to pick pieces from everyone and put it into one giant puzzle.
Back to the point, maybe this… this sub-Flair or side-effect Flair or whatever
can help me control my Flair better. It could be an advantage.”
Kai scoffed before his expression turned sour. “Shixun’s sub-Flair is cut at
touch. He basically cuts anyone with any skin contact. How do you think this
it’s an advantage, Sehun?”
“What do you mean?” he was tired of asking that question to be honest.
“Your brother walks around, fully wrapped in leather because any part of his
skin can cut another person. Now you see Kris’ frustration.” He shoved past
Sehun when Xiomara called for them in a sharp whisper.
“I… am not following,” Sehun hurried after Kai. “Why would Kris be frustrated?
And do you mean… Shixun can cut… like a knife?”
“With a single touch of his pinky, yep.”
“That’s horrible.”
“Still think you want another destructive Flair? You know what. Shixun will be
here for your coronation. So ”
“Oh, my god. I don’t know how to digest this,” Xiomara muttered, rubbing her
forehead as she opened the library’s ancient-like door. “Big brother, you have
so much explaining to do.”
***** Fire and Ice *****
Chapter Notes
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Dust drifted and hovered lazily in the air and collected on the monumental
shelves which reached the high ceiling of the library as cobwebs wove loosely
around the perfectly arranged books with their spines facing outward. The
expansive library left Sehun awestruck when he stepped into the dark, poorly
lit room. He could not count the amount of bookshelves that filled the room and
when he gazed up, his heart jumped at his throat. Ladders and desks were all
caked with dust. Dim yellow lightbulbs lit each row of the shelves. The
floorboards creaked as he wended his way to the nearest bookshelf.
“This old place is still the same as the last time I was here. No, literally.”
Kai commented, swiping a finger across the edge of a desk and held the dust
layered finger up. Sehun glanced to Xiomara who looked bothered beyond
comprehension.
She met Sehun’s gaze and shook her head. “So, you guys are not kidding. This is
actually happening? Sehun, you’re with… that old man?” she jerked her hand in
Kai’s direction.
“No!” Sehun rasped and his voice reverberated into the ceiling. He rubbed the
back of his neck where he felt Kai’s stare sting him. “We’re not together, Xi.
Not a chance. He’s a little too high-maintenance, snobby, cocky, and not even
that smart. Besides,” he tried to keep his breaths even and face straight,
weaving his way past the bookshelf. “Why would I ever go for someone who’s like
hundred years older than me?”
Kai’s snort resonated across the shelves and Sehun clenched his jaw. “I don’t
buy it one bit,” Xiomara rasped, treading behind Sehun. “When did this even
happen? Is this why you’re so darn defensive of him?”
Sehun bit his tongue.
“Oh. Defensive, huh?” Kai sniggered.
Keeping his stride straight, Sehun aimlessly scrutinized the uncountable lines
of books in every corner around him. “Sehun!” his sister hissed, grabbing him
by his elbow and halted him.
“Look. If you two love coming up with these wild theories about something
that’s completely out of order, be my guest. Just leave me out of it.” he was
not annoyed. He was utterly embarrassed. He did not want to lie to Xiomara, in
fact he wanted to tell her everything. But not in front of Kai. The last thing
he wanted right now was to tell that bastard how he really felt about him.
“Okay, mister hothead,” she raised her palms in defence and stepped back. “If
you say so.”
Rolling his eyes, Sehun marched forward.
“You know he’s lying, right?” Kai whispered as if Sehun would not be able to
hear him.
“Yup,” Xi sighed. “I mean I have nothing against you.”
“Well, ditto.”
“I’m just shocked you… swing that way.”
“Always have.” Sehun could feel Kai shrugging behind him.
“Whoa. So why… what’s with you and Dee?”
Sehun’s head pounded again. Hungover and extremely confused as to why Kai was
sharing these things to Xiomara, he turned at the end of the bookshelf and
entered another lane.
“You’re too young to understand,” Kai muttered. “But keep this a secret, will
you?”
“Of course. Cross my heart and hope to die. I would never rat on my own brother
who just volunteered to marry a stranger to save my neck. I’m glad you of all
people feel comfortable telling me this, Kai. I’m never really part of this
family. I finally feel like I’m important. Thanks to Sehun.”
Sehun gripped his fists, wondering if there was any way to stop this
discomforting bonding time between Kai and Xiomara. “Yeah,” Kai grunted under
his breath. “Thanks to Sehun.”
“Okay, so where’s the goddamn logbook?” Sehun groaned, running his hand through
the messy strands of his hair.
“It should be this way,” Xiomara overtook him and clapped a hand to his back,
sending Sehun staggering a step forward. “Sehun, I won’t judge. You never
judged me and I’ll never judge you. I trust you. If you and Kai are a thing, I
know that you have… an explanation and a justification.”
“We are not a thing and we don’t have a thing,” Sehun snapped. “Now can we just
go ahead with what we came here for before anyone finds us snooping around?”
Xiomara took the lead and hurried ahead. But Sehun was held back when Kai
caught his arm. Pushed back against the dusty bookshelf, Sehun exhaled a shaky
breath and stared at Kai, wide-eyed. “So, you really don’t remember a thing?”
“Doesn’t matter if I do,” Sehun murmured and held his breath in when Kai
pressed himself onto him. “Why are you telling her all this stuff?”
“She must be a good egg if you’re willing to sacrifice so much for her even if
practically speaking you just met her,” His fingers steadily gripped Sehun’s
arm and every last one of Sehun’s senses was heightened. It burned. Kai’s
breath, his heat, his body, his hand, even his gaze. They all burned. “This
place could use some good eggs.”
“Which are you, then? Good or bad?” he whispered, lowering his eyes to Kai’s
full lips.
“I’m…” he hummed, casting Sehun’s parted lips a longing look. “Flexible.”
“What does that mean?”
“I can be both good and bad. Depends on what kind of situation I’m in and,” he
lowered his lips to Sehun’s, leaning in just enough for Sehun to taste his hot
breath. “And who I’m with.” He released Sehun’s arm out of the sudden and
withdrew himself before they heard Xiomara calling for them, several lanes
away. Shaking away the lewd thoughts that began to invade Sehun’s mind, he
followed Kai to the lane of bookshelves, calming the storm within him. Kai
seemed to know his way around this library quite well. Sehun could not think of
a day when Kai must have been interested in books or anything educational.
“There,” Xiomara said quietly, standing before a huge metal safe which looked
just as ancient as the library and stood as tall as her. “This was where I last
saw it and it wasn’t locked back then.” She waved her finger at the latch.
“I don’t ever remember it being locked either.” Kai sighed.
“What do we do?” Sehun asked, frowning. “I mean the logbook can’t have much
information. I just wanna know where everybody stands and how dangerous Gwenna
is. But maybe we could go look around for the key? Or some other way to unlatch
it? There has to be something to pick the lock with. Do you have—what are you
doing?!” he yapped when Kai rammed his fist into the latch.
“Improvising.” He shrugged before giving the safe another bang. Jaw-dropped,
Sehun gaped at the latch making a ‘click’ sound before it unlocked.
“Wow. That is by far the sexiest thing I’ve seen a man do. And believe me. I
never relate sexy to a guy.” Xiomara breathed out in awe, batting her eyes at
Kai who was shaking his hand, clenching and releasing his fist.
“You’re barking mad!” Sehun snarled at him.
“I provide results.” Kai muttered back with a cocky expression and pulled the
safe open.
They stood there, stock-still for a moment, staring at the empty safe. “Well,
we tried.” Xiomara sighed.
“It’s amazing how Gwenna stashes her secrets away from her son,” he tossed
Sehun a sidelong glance before slamming the safe shut. “Says a lot about her,
huh?”
“Maybe she just took it with her.”
“Of course she took it with her!”
“It doesn’t have much information in it anyway.” Xiomara shrugged.
“If she’s keeping it away from Sehun, then it has all the information Sehun
needs to know and the ones that Gwenna doesn’t want him to know.” Kai had a
point. A very good one. Sehun did not see why Gwenna would hide something so
trivial like a registry of Flairers from him when he was about to succeed her.
“Like what? Maybe she’s trying to keep it away from you.” Xi also had a point.
Kai shook his head and turned on his heel, heading towards the door. “Highly
doubt that. I’ve seen that book a million times.”
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
“Good morning, Sehun.”
Sehun stiffened at the doorway, half-sleepy and half-taken aback, and stared at
the three middle-aged men who stood in the drawing room—all clad in suit and
tie. It was a new day, therefore Sehun understood that he’d have to face new
complication. Nothing was ever simple in this household.
“Who are they?” he asked Jule who demanded that he meet her in the drawing room
before he was even ready to greet the day. But unlike Xiomara who liked to haul
him out of bed, Jule knocked on his door and calmly asked him. He smiled at
her. The skirt she sported complimented her curvy hips and Sehun slowly started
to appreciate her inner and outer beauty. Not in the sexual way, but in the
friendliest way possible. Jule was a confident, smart, and independent woman.
She was not thin to the bones, but her voluptuous body would turn any straight
guy on. People would not see a downside to Sehun marrying her. Except Sehun of
course. He’d be lying to her and himself.
“These are the tutors I appointed for you.” Jule said with a gentle, but full
smile etched on her red lips.
“Oh,” Sehun took his seat at the table his new tutors settled at. “That was
fast.”
“Your coronation is quite around the corner. We need all the help we can get to
get you into the right shape. Gwenna has approved.” She sank in the chair
beside Sehun.
“We won’t exhaust you, Sehun,” said one of the three men. “We will take it
rather slow, so that you don’t wear yourself out. We believe Miss Vaughn here
has an effective schedule planned out for your lessons. We have some books for
you to read.”
Another tutor slid a couple of hard covered books to Sehun. “Go through them.
They’re about fledging Flairs. We’ll take it one by one.”
“That’s a relief,” Sehun admitted. To be frank, Mark, Yixing and Donghae were
pushing him too hard and he didn’t blame them for assuming that Sehun was up to
par with them. “So, when do I start?”
“Saturday,” Jule answered. “After your welcome party.”
“Sorry, what day is today?”
“Thursday.”
“Wait, so the party’s tomorrow?”
“Were you not informed?” she blinked her eyes as if dumbstruck.
“I’m not informed about a lot of things in this house.” He shrugged.
“Well, we need to fix that.”
“Jule, I need a favour.”
“Sure, Sehun. Anything.”
“I’ll tell you later.”
“If it’s okay with you, we can walk you through the procedures of your
lessons,” said the first tutor. “Maybe it’ll give you an overview and you can
tell us if you’re uncomfortable with any of it.”
Sehun nodded and grinned to himself. This wasn’t that bad. Not bad at all.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
“Do you like her, then?”
Sehun shot Xiomara a shocked look from the bed and gaped at her before
vigorously shaking his head. “No! I mean, yes. Not like… you know.”
Xiomara exhaled a loud sigh and jumped to her feet from the table. “You’re
rambling about how awesome she is breathlessly.”
“Xi, I meant she’s trying to make my life easier. And to be honest, I was
cooped up in that room with the tutors and Jule, going through so many details
about the Flair politics. I really don’t want to talk about it anymore.” He
waved his hand, shaking his head.
“All right. Do you want to talk about Kai, then?” she chirped, opening the
wardrobe.
“No.” he scowled.
“He’s cute.”
“Cute?”
“Okay. He’s hot. I admit it.”
“Stop.”
“Okay, okay. Let’s talk about something else,” she pulled out a glittery navy
blue shirt and a glittery sharp red shirt. Holding out each on one hand, she
flashed a Cheshire grin. “What do you wanna wear?”
Sehun arched an eyebrow. “None.” He spat.
“You can save your birthday suit for your birthday. For this party you need to
wear something. Besides, you wouldn’t want to give Mrs Gump a heart attack with
your huge junk.”
Sehun reflexively drew his hand over his crotch before withdrawing his hand.
“What the hell are you talking about?” he growled. “You don’t know… that.”
“Know that it’s huge?”
“Knock it off! I’m not wearing those glittery clothes.”
“Okay, fine,” she hanged them back in the wardrobe before pulling out a black,
long-sleeved shirt along with a belt and a pair of black pants. “What about
these?”
Sehun smirked. “If I’m gonna wear that, you have to—” he was interrupted when
he heard the knock on the door. Scrambling off the bed, he jogged to the door.
“Hey!” he gasped when Jule flashed a toothy grin.
“There you go. Just what you asked. This is the best I could get in a short
notice.”
“Great,” he accepted the covered dress. “Thank you so much. I owe you one.”
Jule licked her smiling lips and lowered her head. “I’ll see you at the party
tomorrow. I won’t be around in the morning.”
“All right. Good night.” He closed the door when she started to walk away.
Spinning around, he faced a doubtful Xiomara who had her lean arms crossed over
her chest.
“What is that?” she glowered at the black cover in Sehun’s arms.
“You’re always bossing me around, telling me what to wear. This is a gift from
me as a brother.” He handed her the dress.
“You mean you still need to give me something after you agreed to marry Jule
for me?”
“Come on. Don’t argue. I want to do this for you. I never got anyone besides my
parents gifts.”
Scowling and looking a little sceptical, Xiomara settled the dress on the bed
before unzipping the outer layer. Sehun had no idea if this would offend her or
excite her. He was already preparing his face to take a slap. Xiomara
straightened up and swallowed, glaring at the black and white cocktail dress.
“You have got to be kidding me.”
“Well… I know it’s not you. But… maybe… you could be my company?”
Xiomara faced him with a disappointed look. “I can’t wear that. Do you know how
horrible I’ll look in that?!”
“You haven’t even tried it on. You won’t know that for sure.”
“It’s a flipping dress! Trust me, I know!”
“Xi, I’m not saying that you need to wear it. But this is just a token of my
appreciation for everything that you’ve done to make me look nicer. People
actually… lookat me now. If you don’t wanna wear it, fine.”
Xiomara looked conflicted as she continued to lour at Sehun. Then there was
another knock on the door. A little taken aback, Sehun opened the door. His
heart hammered against his chest when he found Gwenna standing on his doorstep.
“I hope I am not bothering you. Jule told me that you’ve been having a tedious
day.” She said in a monotonous voice. Sehun stepped outside and closed the door
behind him.
“No, it’s okay. Xi’s in there. We were just talking about the party tomorrow.
Um… Will there be a lot of people?” he was utterly surprised to find Gwenna out
of her room and on this floor at this hour.
“Fairly,” she smiled pleasantly. “You needn’t worry. It is just to introduce
you to our alliances and the envoys from the ministry. Jule will be by your
side at all times. If you ever feel uncomfortable, you can politely excuse
yourself. But I suggest you to try and socialize with those people. They will
be standing by you later on.”
“Does that mean you won’t be there?”
She pursed her faintly smiling lips. “No, I’m afraid not. Sehun,” she took in a
steady breath. “I heard that you were at the library yesterday. With Kai.”
Sehun gnawed on the inside of his cheek. “We… weren’t doing—”
“I understand that you and he have a better relationship that what you implied
to have?”
Sehun desperately wanted to excuse himself from this conversation. Xiomara
would not have told her about this. How did she know? “It’s nothing like that.”
He blurted out.
“Beware of you befriend, Sehun.” she said calmly and that was what vexed Sehun.
“Oh, really? Why? Because he’s the bad guy? Because he sides withthe bad guy?”
“No. Because I wouldn’t want you to get hurt.” Her expression wilted a little
and Sehun’s stomach clenched.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I’m sure you do, Sehun. You are very sharp. Don’t lose sight of what’s
important. Don’t make the same mistakes I made. The most Kai could want from
you is to get you to Faiion’s side. And he will do anything in his power to
achieve that. Knowing that your weakness, he will use it against you.”
Sehun stood there, tongue-tied, unable to bring himself to speak. Gwenna raised
a hand to his face and stroked his cheek. Sehun recoiled from her touch and she
dropped her dainty hand to her side. “The first step to this alliance with them
is to trust them, Gwenna,” he stated. “And I trust Kai.”
“You are naïve. But you’re smarter than that, Sehun. Never trust anyone. Not
even your own children.” With that, she swayed her way down the hallway and
Sehun rubbed his temples. She was wrong. Kai would not use him. He will not.
Sehun slumped back against the door. Why would it even matter if Kai was
sincere? This was not a love story. Sehun knew that.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
“Sehun? Can I come in?” Jungkook announced himself before entering the room.
Sehun fastened the shirt’s cuffs and turned to face Jungkook who sauntered into
the room, clad in a sharp white shirt and khaki pants. He paused in his tread
and gawked at Sehun. “You look… so handsome.”
Sehun felt blood rush to his cheeks and he shot Jungkook an appreciative grin.
“Thanks. So do you.”
“Nah. Not as good as you. Never as good as you.”
“Is everyone here already?”
“Most of them are.”
Sehun could hear the faint music from the ballroom and from the sound of it, he
concluded this was not one of those rave parties. Instead, this was more of a
formal party. Thank god Xiomara spared him the sparkly clothes. “I am not ready
to meet any of them,” he gave his reflection in the mirror one last time before
walking over to Jungkook. “Hey… How are you doing?”
“Great. Why?” he beamed.
“I heard about the… you know. The downside to your Flair.”
Jungkook’s smile withered at once and he averted his gaze. “Oh.”
“Listen to me. I’m not the wisest person in this place, but I understand how
you feel. We all have our flaws, Jungkook.”
“Can we not… talk about it?” he turned his back to Sehun. “Yixing just asked me
to check on you. I’ll tell him you’ll be coming down.”
“Wait,” he extended a hand to grab Jungkook’s shoulder when Jule walked into
the room. Sehun dropped his hand and gaped at her. “Jule,” he let out, scanning
her from top to toe. She looked absolutely stunning in the beige evening gown.
“You look… gorgeous.”
“I could say the same about you,” her cheeks were already rosy, Sehun doubted
that his compliment could make it any redder. Her wavy hair flowed beautifully
on one side of her neck, down her left breast and the diamond necklace
glimmered over her collarbones. “Are you ready to go?”
“Yeah. Yeah. I’m just waiting for Xi.”
“Okay. I’ll see you down, then.” Jule nodded and took her leave. Jungkook eyed
Sehun with scepticism before storming out of there. Sehun heaved a sigh. If it
were for him, he wouldn’t even go. But Jule advised that this was important for
him to meet these people and Gwenna said the same thing. This was sort of a
preliminary introduction to the Flairer world.
He shut his room’s door and wove his way to Xiomara’s room. The blurry
cacophony of conversions in the floor below made his stomach jump a little. He
had to make a good impression and he was afraid that he was going to make a
fool of himself. Stopping before Xiomara’s room, he sucked in a deep breath and
knocked on her door. He was one hundred per cent sure that Xi would have
chucked the dress he got for her away. But the door sprung open, his jaw fell
slacking as Xiomara stood before him, all dolled up from head to toe. The
lighter makeup and eyeliner made her look so much younger. Sehun was met with
the sudden instinct to protect his little sister. “Don’t say a word.” She
groaned. She even wore earrings and girly shoes. She had her silver hair tied
up and Sehun had to give it to her. She knew style. All kinds of them. One
moment she was this badass superheroine and the next, she was just a teenager
who looked like she was going to prom.
“Okay, I won’t.” Sehun breathed out, holding a crooked arm out. Xiomara took it
hesitantly and they started towards the stairway.
“I feel like a fish out of water.”
“Imagine how I would have felt in those rocker boots.”
“Oh, please. They looked good on you.”
“And you look beautiful.” He said rather convincingly because Xi did not make a
retort. But she frowned.
“I’m too tall. Too skinny. I probably don’t do this dress justice. Heva’s gonna
laugh at my face.”
“Tell you what. I bet she would either envy you or she’d want to be with you.
There’s no other option.”
They descended down the stairs, arm in arm and Sehun nodded his head at a
couple of Minders who greeted him and Xiomara. “That would never happen. One,
she’s far more beautiful than I am. She’s like the most beautiful girl ever.
Why would she even look in my way? Two, she’s super into Dumb Fucking Yeol.”
 Sehun’s heart skipped a beat. He had successfully avoided Chanyeol for the
past two days. But he was bound to meet him tonight. Whatever it was going to
be, Sehun prepared himself for the worst. It was going to be impossible to not
to think about that kiss or anything that Kai had told him. “Chanyeol isn’t
into her.”
“This dress is too short.” She whined but fell silent when they walked into the
hallway that was congested with people in all kinds of clothes. But they were
all formal. Few of them shot Sehun a nod and a smile. Many just stared at him
with champagne glasses idle in their hands. The piano music cut through the
messy chattering of the crowd as Sehun and Xiomara entered the ballroom. Tables
were set and guests were seated. A long table of unnameable food was lined at
the furthest end of the ballroom and Mark was the one at the piano, composedly
playing a tune. The music stopped out of the sudden and everyone turned their
attention to Sehun. He couldn’t spot Gwenna, Dee or Kai in the crowd and Sehun
felt a little despondent. Heva was there, sporting a red cocktail dress and a
striking red lipstick. Yixing and Donghae were surrounded by a group of
gentlemen. Sehun located Philip, Adam and Helena at a near table. Chanyeol was
nowhere to be seen.
Philip got to his feet and approached Sehun at once. “Ladies and gentlemen, our
future Recherché has made an appearance. Thank you for hosting this wonderful
party, Sehun. It’s an absolute pleasure.”
Sehun wore the most plastic smile ever. “Pleasure’s all mine,” he released
Xiomara’s arm and walked up to the podium. “Welcome, everyone. My name is
Sehun. I believe most of you know who I am, but I believe we haven’t met prior
to this. I’ll be honest. I am new to this. All of this. This isn’t even my
party per se. I didn’t throw it. In fact, I was only informed yesterday. I’m
young and I have a lot to learn. Honestly I’m just winging it here. But I hope
you will accept me and I just want to be part of this world. Finally I found
somewhere I belong. So… let the party begin.”
An eerie silence followed and it remained for a while. Sehun bowed his head and
climbed off the podium. A man came forth out of the blue with a toothy grin
etched on his face. “Clark,” he introduced himself, holding his hand out. “It’s
marvellous to meet you.”
“Um, same here.”
“Sehun,” Jule showed up at his side. “This is the fifth division minister. He
takes care of the Flairers living in the human world, with humans.”
“I was the one who found a home for you when your mother gave you away.” Clark
said, sloppily combing his oily grey hair with his chubby fingers. Sehun eyed
the girls who were staring at him from a distance with nervous smiles plastered
to their painted lips. They whispered something to each other and giggled
before eyeing Sehun
“Really?” Sehun blinked and faced Clark again.
“The Oh family was kind to you, weren’t they?”
“They were.” Sehun admitted, feeling a little light-headed when he thought
about how worried his parents must be.
“Gwenna insisted that you’d be taken into a well-off family. Nobody knew why
she gave you away, but it is nice to have you back.”
“Thank—” he was cut off when Kai and Dee walked in. Dee, in her flowery green
vintage gown resonated the feel of spring and Kai simply took Sehun’s breath
away. He literally did. Without a single drop of air, Sehun took in the gelled
messy and spiked hair Kai sported along with his sharp all black suit—shirt,
tie and shoes. He had his coat buttoned and the silver cufflinks shone when he
retrieved his arm from Dee’s waist. All attention immediately shifted to them
and Dee was swarmed by a bunch of men while Kai was instantaneously surrounded
by women. Sehun scowled to himself and looked away when Kai’s gaze landed on
him.
“Hi,” he was greeted by a short middle-aged woman and he bowed a little. “My,
my. What a handsome boy.”
“Thank you, ma’am.”
“Please. Call me Patricia.”
He helplessly looked to Jule when a couple more people came in his way. “Why
not we take a seat? I’m sure you’re famished.” Jule remarked, smiling faintly
as she ushered him to the table near the podium where Jungkook was now seated
at. But Sehun was stopped by another man.
“Did you say your name was Sehun?” he asked. “I—”
“Pardon me,” Sehun’s eyes shot to Kai who interrupted politely. “I need to have
a word with them.”
Bowing his head, the man hesitantly moved away. Xiomara joined them as Kai took
Jule’s hand to kiss the back of it. Sehun wanted to roll his eyes, but
refrained himself. “You look wonderful, Jule.”
“Likewise, Kai.” She mirrored Kai’s polite smile. He was polite. He was neat.
He was sharp. It was so unlike him and Sehun loved and hated every bit of it.
Then Kai turned to Xiomara. “Remind me to ask your hand for a dance later.”
Xiomara still looked nervous and utterly comfortable as her eyes kept bouncing
to and away from Heva who was definitely looking in her way. Sehun felt too
many pairs of eyes back on him now that Kai, the guy who worked for Sehun’s
potential enemy, was standing before him, all teeth and smiles. “Dance, run
away, escape this hellhole, anything you want.” She muttered back.
Kai faced Sehun with a nonchalant smug smile. “Holding it in?”
“Huh?” Sehun sounded stupid, even to himself. He blinked vacantly and sharply
turned his gaze away. “Excuse me. I’ll be right back.” he blurted out and
brushed past Xiomara to get out of there. He had to flash brief grins at
everyone who said hi as he basically jogged out into the hallway.
He kept walking until he was out of anybody’s reach, but he soon reached the
end of the hallway. He hadn’t wandered to this side of the floor and he
disappointedly sighed at the door before turning on his heel to face the way to
the ballroom. Everyone seemed nice to him. But of course they will all have
their doubts about his capability. He leaned back against a wall and caught his
breath. How was he supposed to fit in there? Who was he fooling? This wasn’t
him. He’d make a terrible leader.
“Nota bene. It’s rude to run away from your own party.” Kai’s hoarse voice
reverberated into the hallway and Sehun flinched.
“Noted,” Sehun sighed, tilting his head back on the wall. “Can you just… leave
me to myself for a while?”
Kai, as always, did not seem to care about what Sehun told him. He stopped
before Sehun with his hands stuck in his pants’ pockets. Sehun had to bit his
lip to not to let out an embarrassing sigh. Kai was ridiculously handsome. Not
the royalty, Prince Charming handsome. But the rugged, rebellious handsome.
Everything he did and wore had a roguish edge and this was no exception. “It’s
very daunting. I know.”
“I need to gather my thoughts. No one prepared me for this.”
“Well, if you had stayed at FLAC, you would have been.”
Sehun snorted. “Is that your way of seducing me to join you?”
“What?” Kai cocked a dark brow.
“I thought about this before. And Gwenna kind of… said that you might be…
leading me on so that I will join Faiion.”
Kai’s lips parted, but no sound came out. Instead of responding, he emptily
stared at Sehun.
“Kai?”
“Is that what you think I’m doing?” he asked in a rough tone.
“Why else would you want to fool around with a teenager when you obviously
can’t move on?” he glanced away, frowning a little.
Kai was mum for a moment. “I’m not that cheap, Sehun.” The name always sounded
exhilarating coming from Kai’s mouth. Sehun swelled with both excitement and
dejection at the same time.
“I didn’t mean it that way.”
Kai said nothing as he slumped back against the wall opposite Sehun. He wanted
to trust Kai. He really wanted to. Then exhaling a long breath, Sehun pulled
himself away from the wall.
“Kai… if that’s your intention… then you should just leave. Because I’m not
joining my father. Gwenna might or might not be what you think she is. But
these people are my family.”
Kai pinned Sehun with a grave stare. But before he could say anything, a
discordant racket diverted their attention as a number of Minders burst into
the hallway and jolted towards the stairs. Sehun and Kai exchanged a baffled
look before breaking into a sprint in the direction of the discordance.
“Sehun!” Jungkook yelped when he reached the stairs that were already crowded
by the guests.
“What’s going on?!”
“I don’t know!”
Xiomara showed up right behind him and Sehun did not wait as he took Mark’s
side and hurtled down the stairs, shoving people aside. “Mark?!”
“It’s Chanyeol!” Mark rasped as he angrily wove past the people and Sehun
sprinted after him. It was almost impossible to penetrate the crowd, but once
they had reached the foyer, Sehun came to a halt. One of the Minders or
Champions, Sehun couldn’t tell, was aiding Chanyeol to drag a man into the
house.
“He’s hurt!” Chanyeol exclaimed breathlessly.
“Who the hell is this?!” Mark demanded.
“I found him at the market.” He gasped and stumbled before dropping the man to
the floor and crashed right next to him.
“Chanyeol!” Heva cried and hurried to his side.
“The Snatchers. They were experimenting on him. He’s weak. He needs help.”
Donghae was the first to attend the filthy, soot-covered guy with the dirtiest
hair Sehun had ever seen who had collapsed onto the floor. “Shit,” Donghae
cursed under his breath as he lifted the guy’s head. Then he went completely
still. So did Mark who was gaping beside Sehun. Donghae gently cupped the guy’s
soot-layered face and caressed his cheek. “Ren.” He muttered.
“No,” Sehun heard Kai’s opposition at the back. Then with an animalistic
movement, Kai jammed everyone aside and even shoved past Sehun, bumping into
his shoulder before he crashed to the floor on his knees and Donghae shot up at
once when Kai scooped the dirty, unconscious guy up into his arms. “Ren! No,
no, no! Ren!” he bellowed, pushing the guy’s long, fair hair out of his face
and cradled his head for a moment before lifting the guy. Sehun’s head spun a
little when he noticed how red Kai’s eyes had turned to within seconds. He had
no idea where Kai was carrying him to but he was out of sight within seconds.
Mark breathed out an exasperated sigh as Sehun loured at him, utterly stumped.
What the hell was happening? “Who is that?” he asked Xiomara who shrugged,
looking just as clueless.
“Ren.” Yixing answered the question as if Sehun was supposed to know that guy.
But Kai apparently did.
Sehun clenched his fists and went in the direction Kai and Donghae had
disappeared through. He heard Mark thanking everyone to coming behind him as he
broke into a sprint. Some of the Minders crowded the infirmary wing that Kai
had gone into. “Get out of my way.” he grunted and pushed them aside.
“Sehun!” Yixing called after him and curled an arm around Sehun’s waist before
he could barge into the infirmary. “What are you doing?!”
“Who is that?! How do you guys know him?!” he snapped.
“That’s Ren. Kai’s former lover. I don’t think you should go in there right
now.”
Sehun froze. “What?”
***** Fidelity *****
He sat still on the step with no will to move. Something bilious swirled in a
corner of his empty stomach and he felt like he was hanging mid-air with a
noose around his neck. There was a stinging series of pounds in his head which
harmoniously beat like a glockenspiel. He was confused. But so was everyone
else. So the option of asking anyone of them was crossed out. He planted his
face in his palms before carding his fingers through his hair. “You okay?”
Sehun brought his head up to meet Jule’s comforting smile. “Yeah. That was… a
disaster, wasn’t it?”
“Hardly,” she grinned wider. “It wasn’t your fault. Any idea who the Blugger
is?”
It was almost impossible to not keep a straight face. “A… Blugger?”
Jule seemed to understand his perplexity and unfamiliarity with the term,
although her eyes widened a little. “That’s what we call the enhanced Flairers
Snatchers provide their services to. I’m sure you’ve heard of the Snatchers.”
Sehun ran the tip of his tongue over his lips and provided a curt nod. “You’re
saying that he’s... but I didn’t know they could do it on non-Flairers.”
“They couldn’t. Well, now we know that they’ve been trying to,” she sighed. “I
have to leave. I’ll see you tomorrow, Sehun.”
Sehun managed the best smile he could manage, but it faltered as soon as Jule
had disappeared. He was left alone again. For a minute. There was a sudden blow
on his shoulder blade and he turned his head halfway around to glare at whoever
it was before Xiomara perched on the step next to him. “What’s wrong, big
brother?” she demanded, curling her arms around Sehun’s arm and leaned her head
onto his shoulder. “What’s got your panties in a bunch?”
“Has everyone left?”
“Yeah,” she let out and Sehun rested his own head against hers. “Thank God. The
Blugger saved me from Adam.”
“Do you know who he is?”
“No. Except for the fact that he’s a Blugger.”
“He’s Ren. Kai’s… alleged ex-boyfriend,” The words felt forced when they rolled
off his tongue. “I thought he’d died. Kai told me Gwenna killed him. Yixing,
Mark and Donghae… everyone thought he was dead, too. Jule just told me that he
was taken away by the Snatchers.”
“Yeah. I just talked to Heva and Chanyeol,” she raised her head from his
shoulder. “Chanyeol’s exhausted to the bones. He just went to the Sunless
Market and accidentally bumped into this group and met the boy. Ren apparently
begged him to save him and he was almost dying from all the Flairs that were
injected into him.”
Sehun chewed on the inside of his cheek. “He looked so…” he trailed off, unable
to find the right word. Wrecked? Ruined? Destroyed? Pitiful?But his heart
clenched. He should have been more considerate.
“How do you know he’s… Kai’s ex-boyfriend?” she asked, blinking her eyes.
“Yixing told me.” He reflexively looked in the direction of the hallway to the
infirmary. He knew he should not perturb Kai right now. But it was almost
killing him to not to know what was going on in there. How many years had it
been since Kai had lost him? Twelve? Sehun dropped his head altogether when he
felt like his soul was ripped into pieces. The life and love Kai once had lost
had returned to him.
“Sehun?” Sehun glanced to his sister in a haze and realized she had been
calling his name for a while. Frowning deeply, Xiomara took his hand into hers.
“What’s wrong?” this time, her voice hinted an empathetic tone.
Sehun shook his head as his heart felt unbelievably heavy. Reality hit him like
a boulder and he did not know how he was supposed to endure this unfamiliar
pain. All of coping mechanisms died. “Nothing.” The word resonated its full
meaning on Sehun’s lips. Nothing.
“Don’t lie,” her brows were knitted. “What is it?”
“Xiomara?” the shy female voice diverted her attention before Xiomara rose to
her feet, turning around to meet Heva on the stairs. “I was… um… thinking about
getting Chanyeol some ox tail broth. Do you… want to come along?”
Xiomara looked down to Sehun and heaved a sigh. “I’m actually a little… busy.”
Sehun stood up from the stairs. “No. Go,” he smiled at his sister who was
blushing to the core. “You should go. I’m just gonna,” he scratched the back of
his head and sighed. “Get some sleep. I have lessons in the morning.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah, yeah,” he pulled his sister in for a brief embrace and started up the
stairs. “You two go… get some ox tail broth.”
Heva timidly bowed her head when Sehun shot her a wide grin as he walked past
her. “Chanyeol… asked about you.”
Sehun froze at the top of the stairs and gripped the end of the railing. “Where
is he?”
“He’s asleep now. But he’s in my room in the Champions’ lodging at the
northeast wing.” She casually pointed her finger over her shoulder as if Sehun
was supposed to know what she was talking about.
“It’s okay. He should sleep. I’ll see him tomorrow.”
He did not wait for a reply from neither of the girls and marched straight to
his room.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
The thick silence that hung around him unnerved him greatly. Silence was
supposed to be peaceful. But Sehun was surrounded by people almost every hour
of the day these days that this calm night drove him into the depth of
loneliness. Worst of all, his mind was completely overtaken by Kai. His body
felt sore whenever he thought about him. Tossing himself on the mattress, he
shoved the suffocating duvet aside and grabbed his watch from the bedside table
to peer at the time. Almost ten past four and he groaned. He was wide awake and
hadn’t even caught a wink. He was not sure what irked him more. The fact that
he was not allowed into the infirmary or the fact that Kai had crumbled so hard
just by seeing that guy. Would he ever feel that vulnerable when it came to
Sehun? No. Never. And the sudden realization crushed a part of Sehun.
He got off the bed and pulled a t-shirt over his body before throwing on a pair
of pink pyjama pants that were decorated with cupcakes and candy canes—the only
ones Xiomara had got him so that he will avoid wearing comfortable clothes and
always prefer torture over comfort—over his boxers. He didn’t bother to neaten
his bed hair or put his shoes on as he stormed out of his room. Everyone would
be asleep anyway. The carpeted hallway was smooth beneath his bare feet as he
hurried along it like a child heading downstairs to watch TV while his parents
were asleep. Well, Sehun had never done anything like that of course. Because
he had a TV of his own in his room after he was pulled out of middle school for
causing an unintentional ruckus. He wondered if Xiomara had returned and if Kai
was still in the infirmary as he descended the staircase carelessly.
Providentially for him, the infirmary was not guarded by the Minders. But
Donghae was settled on the floor, leaning against the white door with one of
his knees pulled up and an elbow resting on it. Sehun had not dreamed of the
day he would see Donghae wear that despondent and crestfallen expression. He
looked lifeless. Sehun bit his lip, wondering if he should just silently turn
around and go back to his room.
Then Donghae looked in his way. Surprisingly, he didn’t scowl, he didn’t sneer,
he didn’t do anything but just glance away again to stare at the floor. “Cute
pants.” He murmured. Miserable or not, Donghae was a prick. Sehun should not
forget that.
“I wasn’t going to ask. But… why do you look like someone just told you that
your puppy died?” he asked, edging closer. He eyed the closed infirmary’s door
and swallowed. Behind there was Kai and possibly his long lost lover.
Donghae did not reply and Sehun was not that disappointed. He was not expecting
Donghae to tell him anything anyway. Donghae exhaled a monstrous sigh and threw
his head back against the door.
“Is he… in there?” Sehun asked in the tiniest voice.
“Who?” he kept his eyes on the ceiling as he spoke.
“The… that… guy.”
“Yeah.” He lowered his head again and stared at his palm.
“Is something… wrong?”
Donghae wouldn’t talk even to save his life. Sehun was wasting his time. Then
much to his surprise, Donghae glanced up to him. “We thought he was dead.”
“Yeah. I got that.”
“He was Kai’s…” he looked like he was suffocating and he couldn’t bring himself
to say it. Sehun nodded as if to finish his sentence.
“So you all knew him.”
“Kai had this wild notion that Gwenna was the one who had killed him. There
wasn’t any evidence.”
“So you chose to not to believe him?”
“We couldn’t believe him,” he scowled. “He had gone mad. And without even
thinking, he joined Faiion to stand against Gwenna. Well, now he’s proved
wrong, isn’t he?”
“You could have at least stood by him. He was grieving.” Sehun crossed his arms
over his chest and Donghae pinned him with a belligerent glare.
“You think I wasn’t?”
Those words made Sehun’s blood run cold. The awkward silence and pounding
heartbeat brokered the air. “You… knew him well?”
Shutting his eyes, Donghae brutally clenched his fists and jaw, leaving Sehun
to gape at his infuriation. Then lowering to his knees, Sehun carefully brought
his hesitating hand to Donghae’s shoulder. He didn’t withdraw his hand when
Donghae’s furious, bloodshot eyes flashed open to glower at him.
“Um… I… I didn’t know you guys were close to him.” Sehun didn’t even know that
Ren was important to so many people.
“We weren’t,” he shoved Sehun’s hand off his shoulder and jolted up to his
feet. “What do you want?” he snarled.
“I just wanted to… um.” He pointed at the door.
“The nurses are taking care of his wounds at the moment.”
“No, I wanted to… see Kai.”
If Donghae was surprised, he showed no hint of it. He stepped aside. Sucking in
a deep breath, Sehun raised his fist to knock on the door. Then letting the
breath out, he dropped his fist to his side. He didn’t want to know what was
happening on the other side of that door. He faced Donghae who was staring at
him with his powerful arms crossed over his chest. “Waiting for something?”
Everyone had a flaw, Sehun thought, scrutinizing Donghae. What was Donghae’s?
He jumped a little when the door sprung open and a petite little woman walked
out. She looked up at Donghae and winced as if she was taken aback. “Can I help
you?”
Donghae uncrossed his arms and looked pathetic all over again. “How is he?”
“He’s asleep.”
“Can I… go see him?”
“Yes.” She smiled and left them to themselves.
“How long have you been waiting here?” Sehun asked Donghae, blinking blankly.
“Have you been waiting here all night long?”
Donghae rolled his eyes and entered the infirmary, but halted at the doorway
itself. Sehun peered over Donghae’s shoulder and his heart sank into his
stomach. Ren was fairly cleaned, but his hair was still dirty, tangled in soot.
He was asleep on one of the beds in the infirmary and beside him, Kai was
uncomfortably settled in a chair with his head resting on the edge of the bed
and his fingers were laced with Ren’s. He had his eyes closed and his breathing
was just as even as Ren’s. Sehun’s stomach churned and he suddenly felt like
his knees might buckle. He swallowed a sob and turned away. Donghae closed the
door behind them and sighed.
“We should give them some…” he trailed off once again, leaving Sehun to finish
his sentence.
“Space.”
Then out of the blue, Donghae blurted out, “He’s back. He’s alive. He’s in one
piece. That’s enough for now.”
Sehun had no idea what he was talking about, but he didn’t bother to ask when
he started to walk away. He waited for a moment after Donghae was out of sight.
Then mustering up the courage, he entered the infirmary. Even under the soot
and some other black stuff, Ren was beautiful. He looked incredibly young to be
anywhere near Kai’s age. A curl of whitish grey blond hair was lying over his
eyes and long eyelashes. Kai was firmly holding onto Ren’s hand as if he never
wanted to let go of it ever again. Sehun knew he shouldn’t be here.
Just when he decided to leave, Kai stirred and he slowly cracked an eye open,
raising his head. “Sehun.” he mumbled in a hoarse voice and blinked his eyes a
couple of times before focusing them on Sehun. It was almost impossible to not
to stare at Kai and Ren’s clasped hands.
“I was just leaving,” he whispered. “I didn’t mean to bother.”
Kai kept mum and glanced over to Ren. He brought his free hand to brush the
curl of hair from Ren’s face. The sigh of relief that Kai exhaled flipped
Sehun’s stomach. He smiled at Ren, skimming the shape of Ren’s cheekbone with
his thumb. “It feels like a dream.” He said in muted tones.
Sehun looked away. “I should go.” He blurted out under his breath and started
for the door immediately. His heart ached for Kai to stop him. But he didn’t.
Heavy-hearted, Sehun stopped at the doorway and shot Kai a look of dismal.
Kai’s entire attention was on Ren who was quivering and moving his head as his
eyebrows furrowed.
“Ren?” Kai called in the gentlest voice Sehun had only heard when his father
tried to calm him whenever he had nightmares. That was how much Kai must love
Ren. Never had Kai been that gentle to Sehun and he never will be. Sehun was
not fragile and neither was he precious to Kai. “Ren?” his raised his voice by
a notch. Sehun waited as Ren’s eyes began to twitch.
“Should I get the… nurse?”
Kai completely ignored Sehun’s offer as he clasped his hands to the sides of
Ren’s bony face. “Hey, hey. Ren.” He called.
“Sehun, what’re you doing here?” Mark’s husky inquiry drew Sehun’s focus to
him. He strode straight to the infirmary and glanced down to Sehun’s pants.
“He’s waking up.” Sehun quickly diverted the topic and pointed to Ren.
“Uhh…” he heard a kitteny whimper from Ren and Kai’s shoulders rolled back,
tensed. He caressed Ren’s cheeks, coaxing him to open his eyes.
“Ren.”
Mark quietly stood behind Kai, waiting for Ren to wake himself up.
When it happened, Sehun knew he had lost. But he was glad that Ren was alive
and he had returned to Kai who never would have moved on. Besides, he had
crazier things to do around here. He was going to be crowned as the first
Recherché of the Ten in matter of weeks. He had no time to fool around and
think about this puppy infatuation he held for Kai. Even so, it hurt a little.
To watch the man he wanted to be held by holding another person.
His eyes languidly opened. Everyone froze, including Kai. Then after a moment
of adjustment, in a very ragged voice, Ren asked, “Where… am… I?” The words
seemed to have pained him because he winced and pinched the bridge of his nose.
“Ren,” Kai panted breathlessly and smiled. “Ren. You’re home. You’re… home.”
Ren stared at Kai as if he was looking right through him. He made a subtle
croak at the back of his throat and closed his eyes again. “Who… are you?”
***** You Raise Me Up *****
“Yours is a destructive Flair. A great one at that. You cannot be trained as
everyone else. The downside to having such a powerful Flair is that it controls
you more than you will ever be able to control it. You might have noticed that
it comes naturally to you when you’re in danger or when the fight-or-flight
response kicks in. Your Flair knows and it will ready you for a fight. It’s a
very destructive defence mechanism.”
Day two of training and Sehun already had more insight into this whole Flair
thing than Mark, Donghae and Yixing had ever provided since the day he came
here. The tutors were truly adept at what they did and incredibly accomplished.
They had their own way of getting Sehun to calm down and push every thought
away in order to pin his mind to only the training. There was hardly any
physical training because according to the tutors, any physical training would
be futile until he learned how to control his Flair during a stressful event.
“Which is why when you to think of a major distress that you have undergone in
your life, like you just did, it makes you unbelievably mad or sad,” said one
of the tutors, the shortest one. For some odd reason, Sehun was not allowed to
know any of their names. “And you want to just destroy everything. It is quite
normal for Flairers like you. What you need to do is to cool yourself and thus,
cool your Flair. This can be done by recalling memories of those you cherish.
Your mind has everything to do with your Flair even if you project it via your
hands.”
Sehun glanced to Jule who was busy with her pen and file in a corner of the
drawing room. Darkness was augmenting outside, putting a grave price on dusk.
Jule had been here since early morning just because she wanted to be there with
Sehun during his training. Surely that was not part of her job description. But
it was nice of her. Sehun felt calmer these days with her around. He had also
found out that her Flair had something to do with fast reading and writing. She
could literally finish an entire book within five minutes. Maybe he should take
her to the library one day.
“Um,” Sehun rose from the chaise lounge and stretched his body a little. He had
been cooped up in here all day long, stubbornly refusing to step outside.
Casually dragging his feet to the window, he asked, “So, a mind can be moulded.
Shaped into however you want it to be?”
“Technically speaking,” started the oldest tutor who was seated at the table.
“Yes. Your spirit will always be stronger than your mind.”
Sehun crossed his arms and faced the tutors. Jule was watching them now. “Let’s
just say I don’t want… a Flairer to read my mind. It can be done, right?”
“It takes an awful lot of practice. But yes, with time, you can be able to
build an illusive wall around your mind, blocking the telepathic Flairer out.”
“Kai made it sound so easy.”
A dead silence followed before Jule spoke. “His Flair is the Darkness
Dimension. He can basically live in nothing.”
“She’s right,” said the third tutor. “A Flairer like Kai would of course
experiment a Flair like that on himself. He could perhaps toss some parts of
his mind to nothingness if required.”
Sehun shook his head. “He told me that it’s… possible. What about Kris?”
“What about Kris?” Jule asked, crossing her legs.
“I mean Chanyeol couldn’t read his mind either. He only read what Kris wanted
him to read.”
“Well, how would you know that Kris wasn’t just thinking exactly what Chanyeol
was able to read? Maybe he was just good at hiding thoughts.”
Sehun pursed his lips. He distinctly remembered Chanyeol telling him about
Kris’ fascination for him. “You’re right,” he sighed. “Can we… stop here today?
I’m getting kinda hungry.”
“Yes, of course.” The tutors got up from their seats and shook hands with Sehun
before they wove their way out. A subtle smile took form on Jule’s lips as she
rose to her full height and crossed the room to get to Sehun’s side.
“Why were you asking?” she asked in a cordial tone. She looked intimidating,
yes. Like a strong, confident, powerful, and influential woman. But just like
Donghae, beneath that cold shell, she was a good one.
“I just don’t like Chanyeol snooping around my head,” he let out. “There are
some things I don’t want to share with him.” Like for instance, his little
snogging session with Kai.
“I believe that can be easily solved when you are in charge around here.” Her
grin widened in a very seductive way as she returned to the chair to gather her
things.
“What do you mean?”
“He’s your mother’s Champion. Not yours. You will be able to choose yours some
days before your coronation. Chanyeol does not need to be here anymore if you
want to fire him.”
Sehun mouthed a ‘wow’ and exhaled a heavy breath, walking to the door. “I
don’t… want to fire him, Jule. He’s my friend. He shouldn’t even be here.”
Shrugging, Jule walked out the door Sehun held open. “I suspect it has
something to do with his Flair. Gwenna has been looking for a Flairer who
shares the same Flair as hers.”
“Which is…”
“Extrasensory Perception.”
“What?! So she can read my mind, too?!”
“She’s… getting a little weak. But if she tries hard enough, yes. She can do
more than that. Even mind reading. She doesn’t need to be in the presence of
the person to read their mind. But there’s more. Which is why she is special
and a Recherché.”
Sehun wanted to dig a hole and bury himself. Of course his mother must know
about him and Kai. “That’s just… spec—tacular.” He growled through his grit
teeth, walking alongside Jule.
“That might be a factor of why she chose Chanyeol as her recent Champion.” She
came to a halt by the foyer. “We need to go through the regulations for the
inquisition conclaves and—”
Sehun cut her off by grabbing her shoulders. “We’ll do that tomorrow. It’s a
Sunday evening. You should go home and rest.”
Jule lowered her head and her smile as Sehun dropped his hands to his sides.
“Sehun… Do you… want to go out… for dinner some time?”
Sehun blinked. “Uh… yeah. Sure. Well, I’m not allowed to leave,” he let out a
nervous laugh. “So, we’ll need to have dinner here.”
“Sounds fine to me. I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”
Sehun bowed his head once, smiling at her as she vanished through the hallway
before his smile instantly died. Jule did not deserve this. He shouldn’t be
leading her on like this.
“Why do you have a thing for older people?” Xiomara’s voice coursed into the
foyer and Sehun turned his head halfway around to see her marching down the
stairs. “Is it because you like to be taken care? To be babied?” she scoffed
and strutted straight to him before pulling him into a hug. The last time Sehun
had seen her—which was two days back—she was in a girly dress. Now she was back
in scanty leathers and high ankle boots. “I didn’t get to see you the entire
day yesterday.” She faked a whine as they started towards the kitchen.
“Yeah. I was busy. Jule was walking me through all this legal stuff and I was
doing some meditation.”
“Ooof. You seem wiser already!”
“Shut up. Did you know that Gwenna can read our minds?”
“Yeah. She can know everything that we do. Why?”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Sehun, you never asked.”
He heaved a sigh. “So, she must know that we sneaked out that night, right?”
“Probably. But she didn’t do anything about it. So, maybe she doesn’t. Plus,
she gets heavily worn out these days even if she uses a bit of her Flair. I
highly doubt she’s keeping a tab on everyone all the time.”
“Why would you do that if you knew she can find out?”
“Because I don’t care. Maybe at least then she’ll pay some attention to me.”
She shrugged.
Sehun snorted. “Rebellious, huh?”
“To the core,” she flashed a toothy smile. “Did you check on the Blugger?”
“No,” the answer was curt and wrapped with infuriation. “I’ve been trying to
avoid him. And everybody else. Which was why I’ve been focusing on my stuff for
the past two days.”
“Because… he’s Kai’s ex?”
“Because I don’t care.”
“Huh.”
“What?”
“Well, you say you don’t care. But you’ve been trying to avoid him because
you’re too scared to confront the fact that Kai likes him more?”
Sehun shot her a grimace as he stopped in his tracks. “Please. I really don’t
care whether he likes him or not. I have better things to do. What are you
thinking? I’m not some teenage girl to be jealous over the guy my crush likes.”
“Really? Then why not just go and see him?”
“Who? Ren?”
“Yeah.”
“Why should I?”
Xiomara let out a chuckle. “I saw him. He’s been sleeping. A lot. Wakes up.
Eats something. Only if Chanyeol’s around. Then he conks out again. But I gotta
give it to him. He’s super cute. And feminine as fuck.”
“Chanyeol?”
“Yeah. Chanyeol is the only one he trusts for the time being. Everyone else is
a stranger to him. So, big brother, I think you’re pretty safe. He doesn’t
remember Kai.”
Sehun swallowed the lump that began to rise in his throat and looked in the
direction of the hallway that led to the infirmary. Was he selfish? Maybe. Then
exhaling an exasperated breath, he walked towards the infirmary. Perhaps he
should drop in to see how Kai was holding on. Even if it were hurting him,
Sehun knew deep down, he wanted Kai to be happy and right now, if Ren did not
remember who he was, Kai must be hurt as well.
“Where are you going?” Xi rasped, hurrying after Sehun.
“To prove it to you that I have nothing against that guy and that this doesn’t
bother me.”
His sister chortled behind him. “You’re only fooling yourself, Sehun.”
Rolling his eyes, Sehun knocked on the infirmary’s door before letting himself
in. It was partially dark in there with a lampshade softening the light of the
lamp in the corner. Kai and Dee were cut off in the middle of some conversation
when Sehun walked in. Kai stared at him for a very brief moment before he
glanced away. Sehun felt a pang to his heart. “Hey, Sehun.” Dee muttered,
shooting him a gentle smile.
“Hey, Dee.” He walked over to her and she rose to her feet before wrapping her
arms around Sehun’s shoulders. Sehun gulped as he hugged her tiny waist and
pulled back, pursing his lips.
“How are you, Dee?” he asked in a very low voice, casting Kai a sidelong glance
and was a little crestfallen to see Kai watching Ren—who was sleeping soundly
in the bed, tucked under a duvet—with so much longing in his eyes. It was then
when Sehun took in Ren’s cleaned face. For a moment, his heart sank to depths
he couldn’t describe. Ren was like this beautiful piece of artwork that Sehun
would never be able compare to. Every feature on his face was chiselled to
perfection and his milk-white skin along with his long eyelashes and rosy pink
lips were just simply breath-taking. His shoulder-length hair was the colour of
his skin. His serene beauty raised the fine hairs on Sehun’s skin. What the
hell? How could Kai even look in his way when he had such an otherworldly
lover?! What was he thinking?
“I’m fine, Sehun. I’ve been meaning to talk to you for a while now. But I could
never get a hold of you.” she said, taking a step back.
“Yeah. I got pretty occupied.”
“I… I can’t believe you proposed to marry Jule just so that Xiomara,” her gaze
flashed past Sehun’s shoulder to Xiomara who was standing by the door for a
fleeting second before she fixed them back on Sehun. “Don’t have to marry
Adam.”
“I’m sure Kai told you that isn’t the only reason.” He breathed out and Dee
looked baffled as she tossed Kai a glance.
“No. He didn’t tell me anything.”
“Oh,” So Kai did not share anything about Sehun to even Dee. How nice. Licking
his lips, he dragged his feet to Ren’s bed. “How… is he doing?”
Kai did not reply as he kept his eyes on Ren. Sehun chewed the inside of his
bottom lip, trying to hold the vexation in.
“I’m... sorry.” He murmured and still, there was no reply from Kai.
“He woke up three times, Sehun,” said Dee when Kai did not bother to even look
up at Sehun. “He tried to eat something when Chanyeol offered. We’re just
waiting for the fatigue to wear off. We don’t know how many times the Snatchers
might have tried to inject a Flair into him.”
“I’m sorry,” Sehun said again. “I don’t mean to sound insensitive, but you guys
are here as representatives. Jule told me that you haven’t reviewed any of the
negotiation terms that she has given you. I’d really appreciate if you could
get onto that before you have to leave next week.” He tried to sound as gentle
as possible, but he honestly hoped that it somewhat provoked Kai.
“I’ll do it tonight,” Dee offered as if to spare Kai from it. “We have to
return to FLAC next week as well.”
“I see.” Sehun sighed. He was tired. He needed to stop trying.
“I’m taking him back to our place.” Kai said and Sehun’s eyes darted to him.
“Over my dead body.” Donghae spat, marching into the infirmary with Mark by his
side.
Kai jolted up from his seat and met Donghae with a furious glare. “That can be
arranged.”
Donghae already had his fists balled and ready. “He doesn’t know you anymore.
He’s safe here. For the time being, he only trusts Chanyeol and guess what.
Chanyeol works for us.”
“What makes you think I care? He’s mine.”
Sehun wanted to get out of there right that instant.
Donghae took a step closer to Kai, snarling hard. “He’s no one’s. He’s a
person. A human. You don’t get to claim proprietary rights on him.”
Kai clenched his jaw as he glowered, but there was nothing that he could say to
prove Donghae wrong.
“Besides, you deal with the Snatchers and you were once a Snatcher yourself.
How do we know that you are not one still?”
“Don’t bullshit with your half-assed assertion, Donghae. How many times do we
have to prove it to you that we have no relation with the Snatchers?! If
anything, Gwenna is the one who deals directly with the Snatchers.”
“Now who’s the one with the half-assed assertion, Kai? Don’t fucking think
about it. I’m not going to let you take him. I’ll have it out with you if I
need to.”
“I’d like to see you try.” Kai growled, lurching a step forward before Mark put
himself between them, shoving both Donghae and Kai back.
“Stop it. Donghae’s right, Kai. We’re not going to let you take him. God knows
what the Snatchers did to him and we don’t know if he’s dangerous. You have no
authority to take anything or anyone from this place. So settle down. We’re not
going to hurt him. And think for a second. How distressed he will be if you
took him to an entirely foreign place where he knows nobody. And Donghae,” he
turned to face the man. “Can you please just go and take care of the barrier
issue first?”
“But he—”
“He will be here when you come back. It’s getting late. Go now,” his eyes shot
to Sehun. “And… take Sehun with you.”
“What?!” both Sehun and Donghae rasped in unison.
“Why? So that he can try to escape?” Donghae snapped and Sehun scowled at him.
“Well, I’m pretty sure if he wanted to do that, he would have tried it by now.
Just listen to me and bring him along. Xi, go with them. It’s about time we
trusted him.”
Letting out a loud groan, Donghae turned on his heel and threw a furious glare
in Sehun’s way. “I’m still putting on Restrainers on you.” he muttered, shoving
past Sehun.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
The thickness of the dense orchard made it impossible for Sehun to keep track
of the direction they were walking in. The blackness of the moonless and
starless night made its contribution to the acutely harrowing of the trees. But
it was the first time these people had trusted him enough to let him out of the
mansion. He had earned their trust. Well, maybe not Donghae’s because he had
Sehun’s wrists tied in a Restrainer, which Sehun was not exactly delighted
about. He kept a consistent scowl on Donghae’s back as he led the way across
the lumpy loam.
“I could have just teleported myself and got this done within seconds. But Miss
Sunshine Rosella Lilybelle here can’t handle the nausea from teleportation. And
she can’t even walk fast enough.” Donghae grunted angrily at the front.
“You’re a total prick!” Sehun called out, but didn’t receive a reply as Donghae
silently trod on.
“Don’t bother. He’s immune to that.” Xi scoffed beside him.
“Is this really necessary?” he shoved his wrists in Xiomara’s face. “God, I
hate that guy.”
“I could give two flying fucks about that.” Donghae said, letting out a short
snort.
“I wasn’t talking about you. I was talking about Kai.”
Donghae came to an abrupt halt and looked back to Sehun with an arched eyebrow.
“For whatever reason?”
“I don’t wish to tell you.” Sehun spat, walking past him.
“I think I kinda like you now.”
“Really?” Xiomara asked Donghae.
“Well, my enemy’s enemy is my friend.” He overtook Sehun again.
“I’m not his enemy.”
Donghae did not reply to that and Sehun fell back with Xiomara. “Kids.” Xi
rolled her eyes, picking up her pace to keep up with Donghae.
“Wait. How did it go with Heva?”
“What?”
“You went out with her that night.”
“Oh. Well, turned out she really just wanted to get that fucking ox tail broth
for Dumbyeol and she was too scared to go out alone because the Snatchers might
be looking for Chanyeol and Ren, so she asked me to go with her.”
“You’re serious?”
“Yes, Sehun,” she snapped. “I guess all three of us are just that hopeless when
it comes to love.”
“Whoa,” Donghae gasped. “Who three?”
“Oh, drop the act, Donghae,” Sehun snorted. “You’re not fooling anyone. That’s
why you’re such a grumpy old grandpa.”
“I don’t know what the fuck you two are talking about.” He came to a stop near
a tree and crouched to the ground before he started to dig a hole by the root.
“I knew he was related to a dog in some kind of way.” Sehun sniggered and
Xiomara laughed with him.
But Donghae did not seem to find it amusing or provocative as his face turned
completely grave. He shook his hand in the air to get rid of the moist loam and
cursed under his breath. “The Minder was right. A side of the barrier’s down.”
“What? What’s going on?” Sehun asked and watched Donghae pull out a thin pen-
like gadget from his back pocket before he flipped it between his fingers to
get the right side up. When he clicked the top of it, a faint blue light
flashed on the tip. Sehun edged closer to see Donghae join the gadget to a
round hole on the device that was buried in the loam.
“Xi, check if the other Point is still up,” he tossed Xiomara another one of
pen-like gadgets. “Someone broke the barrier. The barrier Point’s gone. Check
if the cord is still intact.”
Xiomara moved at once and Sehun followed her. “What’s happened?”
“The barrier is the only thing that’s keeping the faux chateau safe. No one can
enter without being registered beforehand. Or they should have special permit.”
She said as she crashed to her knees before a tree and began to claw through
the soil. She froze for a moment when she found the box-like device in the soil
empty. “Donghae! The Point’s gone here, too!” Then without wasting even a
second, she clicked on the gadget, which Sehun assumed was the Point and stuck
it into the device.
“The first lines!” Sehun heard Donghae gasp before the man jolted up to his
feet and burst into a sprint forward. Xiomara joined him at once and Donghae
hurled another Point to her which she caught effortlessly. “They couldn’t have
gotten to the second lines without breaking the first lines!”
Sehun groaned as he confusedly ran after them.
There was a long trail of burrows on two ends. Donghae stopped and he exploded
into swirls of black shadows. And the next thing Sehun saw was Donghae
crouching near the burrow in the ground. As soon as he stabbed the Point into
the device, a large metal rod slammed into Donghae, sending him flying back. He
dropped to the ground with a thud and groaned in pain as Xiomara ran towards
him. “Donghae!”
Ahead, Sehun gaped at the group of uncountable amount unknown men strutting in
their direction. “Xi!” he called out, sprinting faster.
Before Donghae could recover from the previous blow, another came at him. A
monstrous bald man—similar to the one Sehun once witnessed Kai battling on top
of the tower at FLAC—caught Donghae by his neck and raised him off the ground
as a number of spikes was thrown in Xiomara’s direction. She dodged it easily
by jumping to her feet and spun around, planting a pirouette kick in the guy
with the wooden spikes all over his body in the face. All at once, the
attackers launched at them from all directions and Xiomara’s hands detonated
into furious purple flares as a purple ring adorned her black eyes with a
purple flare blazed on her forehead. Sehun’s heart almost jumped out of his
chest when he saw Xiomara blast two of the men as the purple fire swallowed
them whole. Donghae was hurled to the ground again before he was kicked in the
guts by the gargantuan man, throwing him across the ground before Donghae’s
back slammed into a tree. Sehun stopped when one of them charged at him with
green whips in his hands. He looked down at his restrained wrists and mentally
cursed. When one of the whips came in his way, he eluded it by an inch and
dropped to the ground.
“Guys!” he screamed, scrambling to his feet and raced away from the guy. “Take
these… fucking Restrainers off!” he was cut short when the whip caught his shin
and he crashed to the ground right on his face before he was hauled back by the
leg, dragged along the ground. When he was pulled all way to the guy, he turned
on his back and booted him right in there abdomen before kicking him between
his legs and stomped hard on his lower stomach with both his feet. The guy fell
to the ground, moaning in agony and Sehun jumped to his feet at once. Clenching
his jaw, he kneed the guy under the chin and when he arched back with a cry,
Sehun threw a kick to the side of his face, and sent him to the ground. Out of
breath, he spun around and saw Donghae combating with the monster-like man and
two other Flairers single-handedly. The entire placed was lit by Xiomara’s
purple flare. Sehun let out a stifled grunt when a strong arm caught his neck
from behind and he elbowed the man in the ribs before spinning around and
headed him right in the face. His head spun and his vision blurred for a second
but he slammed his tied fists into the guy’s face and elbowed him again on the
side of his face before bounding off the ground and stomped the bluish-grey guy
in his chest. They plummeted into the ground and Sehun perked his head only to
see the blinking blue Point on the ground.
Sobbing for air, he staggered to his feet and broke into a sprint towards the
Point while avoiding a string of punches and knives that came in his way. He
hissed when a blade sliced through his arm and he spun around to kick the man.
When the guy was shoved back by Sehun’s boot, Xiomara enveloped him in the
purple flares. “Get the Pointer to the cord, Sehun!” she squawked.
Grabbing the Pointer, Sehun ducked under something bright and ran as if he were
running for his life to the burrow on the other end. “This was not what I
signed up for!” he cried to himself. Xiomara was already retreating while she
held off most of the attackers. Sehun was forced to a stop when he was blocked.
His jaw dropped when he saw the red, steaming fists. They looked like burning
coal. One was launched at him and Sehun staggered a couple of steps back. “Are
you kidding me?!”
That was when Xiomara bolted to him and shot a gush of flames in the direction
of the attacker. Sehun almost fell when the red fists blocked the purple flames
with their own orange flames. Xiomara dropped her hands as she gaped. “Not
gonna work with me, sweetheart.” The attacker scoffed and smirked and Sehun
realized she was a girl. A very… masculine girl.
“I don’t need my Flair to break your neck.” Xiomara spat and lurched forward
before pouncing on the attacker. The back of her fist slammed into the
attacker’s face, throwing her to the side, but she quickly recovered and caught
Xiomara’s arm before twisting it. Sehun started for the burrow as the attacker
plunged a fist into Xiomara’s abdomen and Xi retaliated by clutching her neck,
and jabbing her in the face. When the attacker withdrew a little, Xi—with her
forehead and hands flaming again—raced forward before she jumped off the ground
and locked her legs around the female attacker’s neck and brought her down to
the ground.
“Sehun!” Donghae bellowed just when Sehun was blocked by two more Flairers. He
glanced to Donghae who snapped the neck of an attacker and held his hand up.
Without hesitating for a second, Sehun hurled the Point to him. Catching it,
Donghae vanished into thin air, exploding into black smokes. When he reappeared
near the second burrow, he ordered, “Xi, get behind the second lines!”
Sehun took on the two Flairers that came onto him. Xiomara was rolled over and
was now trapped beneath the female attacker before she kneed her in the stomach
and elbowed her on the side of her face. Sliding beneath her, she got onto her
feet and exploded into a sprint towards the barrier. “Sehun!” she screamed.
Donghae kicked one last Flairer away from the burrows and fell on his knees
before sticking the Point into the device. Sehun took a blow to his face when
Donghae stepped in. He caught both of the attackers’ necks and snapped it with
just a twitch of his hands. He grappled Sehun’s waist with his arm and hauled
him close before Sehun was engulfed by the black smokes and shadows.
When he was released by the clutches of the black smokes, he was several feet
away from the chaos. He collapsed to the ground, panting for precious air as
Xiomara gasped breathlessly beside him. Sehun threw up, unable to hold himself
back and Donghae dropped to the ground on his back, trying to catch his breath
while Sehun heaved. On the other side of the second lines barrier, the
attackers were rising to their feet and regathered. “I’m gonna fucking kill
these assholes!” Donghae growled after a moment and shot up. He stomped closer
to the attackers, but did not cross the line where Points of the barrier met.
“Whoever the fuck you are, you will suffer your death before the week ends. All
of you! You have no right of crossing this threshold and you even attacked us!”
“You’re surely one to talk,” Sehun raised his head and tried to stand to see
the female attacker with the red-orange fists from earlier weave her way
through the hurt crowd. She wiped the bead of blood that trickled down the
corner of her lips as she glared to Xiomara. “You have no business with the
Snatchers. You are not supposed to poke your fucking dicks into our stuff! One
of you took one of ours.”
Donghae rubbed his temples, cringing heavily. “Jesus Christ. You’re a
Snatcher.”
“Duh?” the girl spat. She sported a short hair and was pleasant on the eyes.
But definitely was not pleasant on the face. “Give him back. You have violated
the accords as well!”
“He’s a non-Flairer! You weren’t supposed to deal with non-Flairers!” Donghae
shouted, fists clenched at his sides.
“Look,” she stood before everyone else. “Let’s have a deal.”
“We don’t deal with fucking Snatchers like you.” Xiomara hissed although she
looked tired to the bone. The girl shot her a cocky look and a subtle smirk.
“Then we will keep attacking until you give back what’s ours.”
Donghae heaved a sigh. “You’re Amber, aren’t you? The daughter of the Rogue.”
“The one and only.”
“We’re not gonna give him to you, Amber. We have no feud with you. Just let him
go.”
“Nah-uh. That doesn’t sit well with me. Here’s how this is going to work. You
hand him back over to us and we won’t rip down your entire barrier and attack
you in that fancy mansion of yours. Otherwise you do have a feud with us,
shorty.”
“You can try,” Xiomara spat. “We won’t hand anyone over to you.”
Sehun raised a brow at her. “Well.”
Xiomara grimaced at him. “We’re not giving Ren away.” she stated firmly.
Honestly, yes, right now, Sehun wanted to serve this Ren guy over to the
Snatchers in a silver platter. But that was just the lovelorn boy inside him
talking.
“Do I have a say in this?” he walked over to Donghae and took a few steps
closer to Amber. “I’m Gwenna and Faiion’s son.”
“Oh, no. He’s gonna try and negotiate with them, too.” Donghae groaned and
Sehun scowled back at him.
“Ah, so you’re the prodigal son that has returned. Finally, someone worth
talking to.” Amber smirked.
“Listen. We can’t give you back Ren. But if you are willing to sit and talk
civilly, maybe we can come to terms that will benefit both sides.”
“Told you.” Donghae snorted behind him and Sehun glared at him again.
“What terms can they be?” Amber cocked a brow, crossing her arms over her
chest.
“You are outlaws. You have no place in the ministry, I presume? This doesn’t
have to go on. Let me talk to the guy in charge.”
“I am the guy in charge.” she informed.
“All right, then. I want to see you again. Come by the mansion on a special
permit.”
“No way!” Xiomara snapped.
Amber’s gaze bounced to her before it darted back to Sehun. “Fine. You want to
do this civilly, huh? Okay. But in the end, I’m getting what I want. Capiche?”
Sehun stayed mum with his jaw clenched.
Amber then turned around. “Let’s leave for now,” she looked back to Xiomara
with a disdainful look. “Looking forward to kicking your ass again.”
“I totally kicked yourass.” Xi snarled and turned on her heels, mending her way
back to the mansion.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
“Oh, my god! What happened?!” Jungkook came running into the hallway when he
spotted Sehun, Donghae and Xi walking in. Behind him, Yixing gasped beside Kai
before hurrying to Donghae’s side.
“What the hell?!”
“Snatchers.” Donghae said, shaking his head as fatigue took over him.
“Snatchers?!” Yixing rasped.
“They ambushed us. We need a better system for the fucking barrier. Where’s
Mark? We need the Minders to round the area.” He started towards the staircase
with Yixing desperately hurtling behind him. Panting, Jungkook pulled Xiomara
into a hug.
“Thank God, you’re alive.”
“Jungkook, you seriously think I would die that easily?” she laughed and
ruffled his hair before pulling back from the hug.
“You two look like you just walked out of a hellhole.”
“We literally just did.”
Jungkook turned to Sehun with a concerned face. “I’m glad you’re alive, too.”
Sehun smiled. “Yeah.”
“I need a bath.” Xiomara sighed and hurried up the stairs. Jungkook followed
her like a puppy with teary eyes.
Emitting an audible breath of relief, Sehun glanced to Kai who was standing
frozen in the hallway, staring at Sehun in shock. Then licking his lips, he
started towards Kai to get past him so that he can get some stuff to clean his
wounds from the infirmary. His wrists were sore too from the clutch of the
Restrainer.
“Sehun,” Kai exhaled in disbelief, but Sehun ignored him as he walked by.
“Sehun,” he called again and caught his arm. “You’re bleeding.”
“Yeah, I know,” he pulled his arm free and countered Kai’s frown with a brutal
scowl. “That’s why I’m going to get it looked at.” He was about to walk away
when Kai grabbed hold of his hand.
“What is wrong with you?”
“What is wrong with me?!” he ripped his hand from Kai’s grip. “Why are you even
bothering to act like you care shit about me?!”
“What?” Kai’s face wilted almost immediately.
“The love of your life is back. And I almost died tonight because of him. But
that doesn’t matter. Because he’s safe in your arms, isn’t he?”
“Sehun—”
“No, just… just stop, Kai. I don’t want to hear it. Gwenna was right. You were
just fooling around with me for whatever gain, I don’t want to know. And I
totally understand. You thought he was dead all this while and now that he has
returned to you, of course you’d want to be with him again. I’m happy for you.
Totally happy for you. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a whole lot of shit to
resolve. You can just go back to nursing—”
“Oh, for god’s sakes, shut the hell up.” he cut Sehun off and grabbed the sides
of Sehun’s face before smashing their lips together. Their hot mouths met in a
ferocious kiss and Sehun lost control of himself as Kai pinned him to the wall.
Sehun’s hands desperately found their way to Kai’s neck and he entangled his
fingers in Kai’s hair. The wetness and heat mingled when Kai slid his tongue
into the burning cavern of Sehun’s mouth. His teeth mercilessly grazed and bit
Sehun’s lower lip. He pushed all of his strength onto Sehun and into the kiss,
sucking the soul out of Sehun through his mouth. His hands clawed into Sehun’s
ass, nails digging into the leather pants and flesh. His soft lips abused all
of Sehun’s mouth as he pressed his body into Sehun’s. Cocking his head to the
side in order to gain more access into Sehun’s mouth, Kai rolled his hips
against Sehun’s and kissed him hungrily while Sehun gripped onto his hair.
Sehun’s body arched into Kai’s when Kai slid a hand down his ass and between
his thighs.
With swollen, saliva-glossed lips, Kai pulled back and Sehun chased after his
lips, leaning in for more. Kai’s tongue and wet lips kissed him all over the
mouth and jaw, leaving his marks prominently. As Sehun’s hands drooped down to
Kai’s chest to cling onto his shirt, Kai cupped the back of Sehun’s head and
delved his tongue inside Sehun’s mouth. When they broke apart, both were left
breathless with swollen tender lips. Kai panted against Sehun’s mouth. Their
foreheads were pressed together as they caught their breath. “I still… love
Ren, Sehun.” he whispered, sobbing for air.
Sehun’s eyes flashed open and he pushed Kai away. Panting, he stared at Kai
with his eyes popped out.
“I can’t just… Sehun, he… I can’t. He is my first love and… for so many years
I’ve lived believing that he’s my last as well. But that doesn’t mean—”
Sehun shook his jaded head and blinked rapidly to clear his vision. “Don’t.” he
waved Kai off and hurriedly walked away from him. He knew exactly what Kai was
about to say. And no. Sehun will not be anyone’s second best. The bastard can
go fuck himself. With tears welling up in his eyes, Sehun clenched his hands
into fists. He didn’t bother to go to the infirmary. Instead, he broke into a
jog towards the stairway that led to his room.
He almost bumped into Chanyeol in the middle of stairs but Chanyeol caught his
shoulders before he could fall down the steps. “Shit!” Sehun hissed loudly and
furiously blinked the tears away as Chanyeol steadied him.
“Whoa. What the heck happened to—” he stopped himself when Sehun grabbed his
collars and began to drag him back up the stairs. “Sehun, you’re bleeding!”
“I don’t care.”
“Where are you—Sehun!” he grunted as Sehun hauled him all the way to his room
by the collars of his shirt. Shoving the door open, Sehun pushed Chanyeol into
the room without releasing the shirt and slammed the door shut behind him. Then
with the vigour and anger that consumed him, he ripped Chanyeol’s shirt open.
“Sehun!” he gasped when Sehun shoved him onto the bed.
“I’m so close to destroying everything in this house. You don’t want to push me
away right now, Chanyeol.” He spat through his grinding teeth and climbed onto
the bed. Kneeling on either sides of the traumatized Chanyeol, Sehun pulled the
t-shirt over his head and tossed it to the floor before leaning down and kissed
Chanyeol full on mouth while his hands fumbled on the belt around Chanyeol’s
waist. When he had unfastened the buckle, he pinned his hands to the mattress
on either sides of Chanyeol’s head. Chanyeol moaned into Sehun’s mouth while
their tongues danced erotically around one another.
***** Trickier Than Ever *****
Chanyeol’s fiery hot lips demanded all of Sehun’s swollen mouth and without
putting up much of a fight, Sehun granted him all the access. A furious passion
was traded in the intermingling of their billowing breaths. Sehun found himself
rocking his hips back and fro, grinding his ass on Chanyeol’s protruding cock
and the vicious friction their pants made earned him a ravenous moan from the
deepest pit of Chanyeol’s throat. Sehun fisted the covers of the bed as one of
Chanyeol’s hands entangled itself in Sehun’s hair while the other breached the
waistline of Sehun’s tight pants. Sehun disconnected their lips and raised his
head, eyes clenched, to let out a moan and suck in a trembling breath when
Chanyeol’s long fingers brushed his tailbone, edging on the crack of Sehun’s
ass beneath his boxers. There was no reasonable explanation as to why Sehun was
doing this. He just wanted to do it to get back at Kai. He was just too
exhausted of going in the right direction. This instant, he just wanted to be
fulfilled. As fulfilled as Kai would be able to fulfil him. Clenching his eyes
harder, he spread his knees further apart and pressed his cock to Chanyeol’s.
He was not sure if he were doing anything right, but screw it. His cock swelled
inside his pants, begging to be released. Dropping his head, he claimed
Chanyeol’s mouth again and kissed him with all tongue and teeth.
“Stop… Sehun,” Chanyeol gasped into Sehun’s mouth, withdrawing his hand from
Sehun’s pants, but Sehun relentlessly kissed him—as hard as Kai had just kissed
him. “Sehun.” He lightly pressed his hand to Sehun’s collarbones and neck
before forcing him to break the kiss. Panting breathlessly, Sehun stared into
Chanyeol’s glowering eyes. They froze in that position for a moment as their
chests heaved against one another, trying to suck in all the air they could.
When the moment had passed, Sehun exhaled a loud sigh and rolled off Chanyeol.
He dropped to the bed and aimlessly stared at the ceiling as Chanyeol propped
himself up on his elbows and fixed his gaze on Sehun. “What the hell are you
doing?”
It took Sehun a minute to respond. But when he did, he couldn’t look at
Chanyeol in the eyes. “I’m… sorry.”
“Yeah. You should be,” He sat up and planted his head in his hands with his
knees drawn up. Sehun licked his throbbing lips and pushed himself upright
before pressing a hand to Chanyeol’s back. Chanyeol raised his head and glanced
to Sehun with his jaw furiously clenched. “What is wrong with you?”
Sehun felt his heart pound in his throat. “I’m sorry.” The words came out as a
whisper.
Shaking his head, Chanyeol looked away and scrubbed his face with his bare
palm. “My feelings for you… are sincere, Sehun. And you take them for fucking
granted. Do you have any idea how…” he trailed off with so much anguish in his
eyes. Within a mere second, his anger dissipated into misery. “How could you
even think of using me like this?”
“No, Chanyeol,” Sehun rasped, grabbing onto Chanyeol’s ridiculously hard arm.
He felt the bicep flex under his palm. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to… I didn’t
want to think about him.” He was not sure if it were entirely the truth. But he
was not using Chanyeol just for a distraction. “I was not… using you,
Chanyeol,” he muttered under his breath, pressing his lips to Chanyeol’s
shoulder. “I… I have never…” he closed his eyes and swallowed. “I don’t think I
will be… doing this with you if I were just using you, Chanyeol.”
There was a fragile silence and Sehun patiently waited for Chanyeol to say
something. “You’re just mad,” Chanyeol sighed after a while and Sehun cracked
his eyes open to look up at him. “You don’t want to do this right now, Sehun.
You’ll regret it.”
“I won’t.”
“You will.”
Sehun watched him for a minute with pursed lips. He would have regretted it.
“You’re right. It’s unfair. To you and to me.” he pulled away and pulled his
knees to his bare chest to hug them. He was mad at Kai for doing that to him
when he was in love with Ren. And here he was, being totally unfair to Chanyeol
while his mind was swarmed by thoughts of Kai. What was the difference between
Kai and him? It had been an overwhelming night and Sehun had lost half of his
mind.
“That bad, huh?” Chanyeol scoffed.
“You have no idea.” He burrowed his forehead in the crack between his knees.
“Let’s take a look at that wound first,” He grunted and got off the bed before
hurrying into the bathroom. Sehun glanced down at his arm and winced. He had
forgotten all about it. Chanyeol returned with a first aid kit in one hand and
a wet towel in the other. He flumped back on the bed and gently pulled Sehun’s
hand to his lap. “Now, how did this happen?”
Sehun shrugged tiredly.
“Come on. Should I read your mind?” he started to clean the slash with the
towel.
“You never asked for permission before.”
“I couldn’t help it and I’m not gonna apologize for that. If I hadn’t, I would
have done the gravest mistake of my life.”
Sehun frowned and hissed a little in pain. “The Snatchers.”
Chanyeol looked up in shock and Sehun knew he was helplessly reading his mind
again. He froze with the towel pressed to Sehun’s arm. “Holy fuck.”
“Yeah. But I’m gonna fix it. Don’t worry.”
“It’s my fault. I brought him here.” His eyebrows knitted into a frown.
“No kidding,” Sehun rolled his eyes and tried to keep his eyes off Chanyeol’s
exposed abs. His torn shirt still clung on his arms and Sehun fought the urge
to stare at Chanyeol’s toned chest. “Why did you even… bring him here?”
Chanyeol arched a brow. “You’re telling that I shouldn’t have?”
“No. God, no. I meant why you saved him in the first place. Okay, that doesn’t
sound any better. I’m just saying that I never thought that you would risk your
life like that. I fought with those Snatchers tonight, Chanyeol. They’re… they
were monstrous.”
“And you fought them,” Chanyeol smirked. “That’s what it takes to be a true
Flairer, Sehun. You’re strong. You didn’t back down from the fight. And the
fact that you didn’t hesitate or run away from the fight proves that you will
be a leader that people would want to follow.”
Sehun couldn’t help but smile at that. “I might add that I had Restrainers on.
But this isn’t about me. Tell me. Why did you do that when you knew you could
get into danger?”
Chanyeol kept mum for a while as he attended the wound. “I just wanted to. He
begged me.”
Sehun exhaled an exasperated sigh. “I guess he’s just that charming, huh?”
“I’d rather not make you feel better right now just because he’s Kai’s lover,”
he mumbled behind his perfect set of teeth, keeping his eyes on the wound.
“Doesn’t look like it needs stitches.”
“Hey,” he carded his fingers through Chanyeol’s hair and Chanyeol looked up to
him. “I swear. I wanted it. I wanted to do it.”
“I know,” he flashed an insincere smile. “But you wish it was with Kai. You
want him to be the one to—”
“Enough, Chanyeol. He’s still head over heels in love with Ren and I guess I
should just be happy for him. Besides, we were never a thing. It could have
just been a fling.”
Chanyeol did not bother to make a reply as he wrapped the arm in a bandage. It
was obvious to see that he was trying his level best to maintain a straight
face. Why couldn’t Sehun have just fallen for him instead? Everything would
have been so much easier. When he was done, he eyeballed Sehun’s face before
raising a hand to a cheek. Sehun cringed when Chanyeol cupped the cheek and
very gently caressed his cheekbone with his thumb. “You’re bruising.” He
whispered and Sehun closed his eyes, leaning into his touch.
“I want to, Chanyeol,” he blurted out, fluttering his eyes open. “I want to go
out with you.”
Chanyeol smirked and withdrew his hand. Then shaking his head, he rose from the
bed. “I’m not a substitute, Sehun. It’s good thing I can read your mind.”
“You cannot read my heart, Chanyeol!” Sehun snarled, kneeling up on the bed and
caught his arm before he could walk away.
“I’m glad I can’t!” he pulled his arm free and sighed. “You need to get some
rest.”
“No,” he knelt up and pressed his palms to Chanyeol’s abs. “Don’t go.”
“Sehun—”
“Just stay with me tonight. As a friend, at least.”
His face was unreadable as he stared down at Sehun for a long moment. Then
heaving a sigh, he climbed back into the bed. “You and your wide eyes.” he
groaned and dropped to lie down. Sehun silently took his place on the bed
beside Chanyeol with an appropriate and safe distance between them. Sehun was
definitely not planning to cross that distance. Chanyeol tucked his hand under
his head and kept his eyes on the ceiling.
“I’ve been having a crazy weekend.” Sehun murmured.
“Yeah? Join the club. You should get your own Champions soon.”
“You protected me before.”
“That wasn’t because I was your guard, Sehun. I’m only training to be Gwenna’s
Champion. I protected you because you were my friend.”
Were. Sehun duly noted.
“Why did you even go to the Sunless Market that night, Chanyeol? You knew it
was my Welcome Party.” he decided to ask. He desperately needed to mend things
with Chanyeol. Their friendship was ruined and Sehun was taking all the wrong
steps of making repairing it.
“Gwenna asked me to run some errands.”
Sehun snapped his lips shut and vacantly blinked. Of course she did. He was way
too exhausted to come with conspiracy theories. He licked his lips and glanced
to Chanyeol who had his arm thrown over his eyes now. Sehun waited for some
minutes. What would be so wrong to give Chanyeol a chance? Perhaps Chanyeol was
Sehun needed to mend his heart right now. He was not going to be that foolish
boy who kept pining for Kai. Kai needed a wake-up call. Sehun was not going to
sit around, waiting for him to stop loving Ren. If he wanted to be with Ren,
fine. Fine.
With his heart thundering, Sehun crossed the space and carefully splayed a hand
on Chanyeol’s hard chest. Chanyeol made no movement. Sehun closed his eyes and
resettled his head on Chanyeol’s shoulder, nestling the top of his head under
Chanyeol’s jaw. His chest was warm and his skin burned against Sehun’s cheek.
“I really am sorry, Chanyeol.” He breathed out, hoping that Chanyeol didn’t
hear him and he had gone to sleep.
But his heart skipped a beat when Chanyeol lazily pulled his arm off his eyes
and draped it over Sehun’s back and shoulder. His hand was lightly settled over
Sehun’s unhurt arm.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
Reluctantly, he forced his eyes open and snapped them shut tight again, furious
at the unwelcoming brightness of the morning. The bedsheet was soft and warm in
his face, chest, and stomach. His back was bare, accepting the heat radiating
from something else. The morning fatigue swallowed him and he found himself
falling back into the drowsiness. A brutal string of thuds flew his eyes open
again and he realized that the knocks on the door had woken him up. He perked
his head up and confusedly blinked at the door. “Sehun?” he heard Jule’s faint
calling on the other side of the door. Sehun turned his head around and gaped
over his shoulder at Chanyeol whose chest was almost pressed against his back.
One of the man’s long legs was entangled around Sehun’s. Sehun helplessly
gawked at his sleeping friend for a moment. He really didn’t want to bother his
sleep.
He carefully pulled his leg free from Chanyeol’s and stealthily slid off the
bed. He landed on his knee and palm on the floor before he scurried to his
feet. He looked back to Chanyeol and rubbed his eyes with his knuckles before
hurrying to get the door. “Jule. Hey,” He muttered, holding the door open
narrowly and pressed himself to the gap to block Jule. “Good morning.” He
cleared his throat to escape the sleepy, hoarse voice and blinked his droopy
eyes.
Jule’s jaw went slacking as her eyes wandered down Sehun’s shirtless body. “I…
I’m sorry,” she swallowed and looked up at Sehun’s face again. “I thought you
might be up.”
“Sorry. I’m late, aren’t I?”
“Don’t worry about it. I heard what happened last night. I cancelled all your
lessons, so you can rest the day.”
“No, no. That won’t be necessary,” he gripped onto the edge of the door over
his head and smiled. “I’m fine. And I have some things… Uh… I need a favour.”
“What is it?”
“I sort of promised this Snatcher last night. Her name was… Amber.”
“Amber Rogue?” she cocked a judgmental eyebrow. “She was there?”
“Yeah. She wants Ren back. And I told her that we can sit and talk this out. So
can you like… get her one of those special permits or arrange a meeting?”
“Sehun, why would you...” she trailed off, looking exasperated and shocked at
the same time. “Can I come inside?”
“No! Uh… Sorry, but it’s kind of a mess in here.”
Jule blinked. “Okay, why sort of talk did you promise her?”
“Just a talk. I know she might have her demands. Please, Jule. I need you to
help me. Otherwise they’re going to keep ambushing us. She’s willing to talk.”
“And you trust her?! Oh, god. You seriously trust people too much.”
Sehun shrugged. “Please?”
Jule rubbed her forehead and sighed. “A Snatcher can’t enter this premise,
Sehun. There’s too many regulations to see to even if it’s just once.”
“Then, fine. I’ll see her at her place.”
“Sehun—”
“You gotta help me, Jule. I’m trying to save lives here.”
Then she let out a loud breath. “I’ll see what I can do. But I can’t promise
anything.”
“Great. The sooner the better.”
Jule shook her head and turned on her heel to walk away before Sehun caught her
hand. She looked startled for a moment and Sehun quickly released it. “What is
it?” she asked, gulping.
“Last night,” he glanced around the hallway before continuing. “I had a
Restrainer on.”
“Yes, I heard. Xiomara is kinda blowing her trumpet to everyone about how
awesome you three were.”
“Well, they had my back. I wasn’t that awesome. The thing is, you know how I
lose my shit when I’m in a distressful situation? It didn’t happen last night.”
“Because you had a Restrainer?”
“Yes. Do you… think I can get some kind of Restrainer which I can wear all the
time around my wrists or something? Because I understand that it’s possible to
restrain the Flair if we put a Restrainer around the manipulator of the Flair,
right? In my case, my hands.”
“Yeah. I’ll get some wrist bands made for you, then.”
“You’re the best.” Sehun grinned from ear to ear and Jule mirrored his smile
before she walked away. Letting out a shaky breath, Sehun retreated into the
protection of his room and was about to shut the door when it was forced open
again. His heart dropped to his stomach when Kai barged in without any
forewarning. “Kai!” he gasped.
“We need to talk.” Kai blurted out before his eyes darted to the bed and his
mouth was left hanging open for some seconds.
“It… isn’t what it looks like.” Sehun muttered.
***** Prostration *****
Chapter Notes
See the end of the chapter for notes
The subtlety of the anger that lingered in Kai’s expression silenced Sehun
altogether. It was not intimidation that Sehun felt when pursed his lips while
Kai relentlessly stared at Chanyeol who was sprawled on Sehun’s bed, half-
naked. It was some sort of smug complacency. Sehun rolled his jaw, biting back
on a smirk. This had not been his intention, but now that it was right there,
why should he fight it? He silently let Kai take in everything that was laid
out before him. Kai’s eyes reverted to Sehun’s bare body which he eyeballed
hopelessly. Crossing his arms over his unclothed chest, Sehun cleared his
throat. “On second thought, I don’t need to explain a thing. So, what is it
that you wanted to talk about?” he asked in a low voice, careful not to wake
Chanyeol up.
Kai blurrily blinked and rubbed an eye before glancing over to the conked out
Chanyeol again. Then with a tight jaw, he stormed out of the room without a
word. Dropping his hands back to his sides, Sehun heaved a long breath and
exhaled heavily before dragging his weight into the bathroom.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
“You’re with your specialtutors today?” Yixing announced himself with a clap of
his hand to Sehun’s back and Sehun almost spurted the milk out, jerking forward
at the table. He looked up at the grinning Yixing with an annoyed glare. “I
just saw Jule in the drawing room with Deevana and Kai. They’re discussing
something hella serious,” He took his seat on the other side of the table and
cocked an eyebrow at the cereal box. “You’re eating cereal?”
“Does it look like I’m fine-dining?” Sehun shoved another spoonful of milk and
cereal into his mouth.
“Mrs Gump, can I get some blood sausages?” he shot at Mrs Gump who was busy
shifting the flower vases. “I can’t believe you’ve stooped to Jungkook’s
level.” He snorted.
Sehun rolled his eyes. “Jungkook’s the only normal person in this house, then.
If you’ve never eaten Froot Loops before, you’re the one who’s missing out.
It’s breakfast, Yixing. Cereal’s a preferable breakfast. Not everything has to
be bloody and angry and serious and scary.”
“It’s past two in the afternoon, Sehun. You’re eating Froot Loops. And you’re
about to become one of the strongest Flairer in this world.”
He swallowed another spoon of cereal before speaking again. “What does Froot
Loops have anything to do with becoming the strongest Flairer in this world?!”
Yixing shook his head, chuckling a little. “All right. I won’t come between you
and your cereal. I heard you kicked some ass last night.”
“Barely.”
“I can see that you got your face kicked.”
“Is it that bad?” Sehun unconsciously raised a hand to lightly stroke the
throbbing contusion on his cheekbone.
“Nah. You look tough now. You got a scar on your arm and you got your face
bludgeoned.”
Sehun shrugged, smirking a little and spooned the cereal. “I kinda like it,
too.” He wondered if Chanyeol had gotten up. He wondered if Kai was thinking
about what happened this morning. He also wondered if it had hurt Kai even in
the slightest. Sehun’s heart sank that moment. He must be a horrible person to
be taking joy from this. No. I am every bit of human as Kai is. And if he could
not stop loving Ren while he’s developing some sort of shit for me, I’m allowed
to feel hurt and hurt him in return, too. How could he say that he still loves
Ren right after shoving his throat down my throat?! Sehun gripped both his jaw
and spoon. Maybe it was the surrounding and the people he was hanging out with
these days, but he realized he was starting to become someone he was not. The
old Sehun would have bothered himself with such things. The old Sehun would not
be brooding over a man. The old Sehun would have been terrified after what had
happened last night. The old Sehun would have been traumatized after witnessing
Donghae kill all those Snatchers right before his eyes. Well, maybe violence
had always been in Sehun’s blood.
“You did a good job, Sehun,” Yixing’s comment slapped Sehun back to reality. “I
know Donghae doesn’t show it, but he’s incredibly surprised by what you did
last night.”
“Yeah. Well, he isn’t the only one.” He uttered under his breath, spooning the
remaining content of the bowl.
“Oh and we got in touch with your parents.”
Sehun’s eyes widened. “What?”
“You can talk to them if you want. We told them that you’re safe and you’re
with us.”
“What did they say?”
“Nothing,” he shrugged. “They’ve been missing you a lot.”
Sehun palmed his face and scrubbed it. When he pulled his hand from his face,
he was met with Donghae who walked into the kitchen with a ridiculously
sheepish grin plastered to his face. “Come on in.” his voice was so gentle that
Sehun barely recognized it. Hell! He couldn’t even recognize Donghae’s face! He
was smiling. With a sincerity that Sehun had never seen. A smile on his face
seemed utterly foreign. Like an alien. The most Donghae had given was a smirk
and a mocking laugh. Sehun had never seen such a more loving smile. Donghae
held his hand out and it took a moment before Ren entered the kitchen.
Only when Sehun glanced to Yixing did he realize that they were both gaping.
Ren did not take Donghae’s hand as he stepped in and looked around the room.
Mrs Gump stood frozen as she scanned the blonde boy from top to toe. He looked
like a lost puppy when he decided to take Donghae’s hand. That instant, Sehun
did not miss the expression on Donghae’s face which lit up like it was
Christmas. Ren had most of his face covered in his long white hair as he looked
to Sehun and Yixing at the table. He was clad in an oversized shirt and a pair
of sweatpants, but was in a much, much better shape than the last time Sehun
had seen him.
“You should sit.” Donghae muttered in a quiet voice and slowly ushered Ren to
the table.
“How did you get him to come out of the infirmary?” Yixing hissed in surprise,
slightly as awestruck as Sehun was.
Just when Ren reached the chair, he let out a very silent disgruntled whimper
in disapproval and immediately spun around as if to leave. He bumped into
Donghae’s chest and froze for a moment when Donghae protectively wrapped an arm
around his shoulders. “It’s okay. They’re all friends.” He whispered and took
his seat first. Ren looked bothered as he scowled past the curtains of his
bangs. Then he slowly sank into the chair next to Donghae’s.
“Such a pretty boy,” Mrs Gump smiled a motherly smile and Sehun’s stomach
knotted. Not you too, Mrs Gump. He tried his best to not to scowl as he shifted
in his seat. “Settle in. This is your home, too. What does he like? I’ll get
you some waffles.”
“You had waffles?” Sehun rasped despite himself. “You said you didn’t make any
breakfast!”
Mrs Gump pinned him with a moot gaze. Sehun let it go. He scratched the back of
his head and glanced up at Ren who was watching him with a crazy curiosity in
his eyes now. Sehun knew that this tacit competition with Ren was the most
childish thing he had ever done.
“Donghae, stop doing that creepy thing.” Yixing sniggered and Donghae tore his
eyes from Ren to fix them on Yixing.
“What creepy thing?”
“You’re grinning like your girlfriend just agreed to give you a blowjob for the
first time.”
Donghae’s smile faltered at once and Sehun knew he was restraining himself from
hurling the milk carton to Yixing’s face. “I don’t have a… girlfriend. I d-
don’t. Mrs Gump, I’d like a burger or something.” he was rambling and Sehun,
for some odd reason, was relieved that Donghae was also human. Well, for most
part. Donghae had scooted further way from Ren with his cheeks burning red. He
bit his lower lip and kept his head hung. Ren, on the other hand, was glancing
around the kitchen.
“So, Ren. Not sure if you remember me, I’m Yixing.” Yixing extended a hand
across the table and Ren stared at it, wide-eyed.
Donghae slapped Yixing hand away and subtly shook his head as if to warn Yixing
to stay back.
“Hi.” Ren said after a while, keeping his eyes so low that Sehun thought he
might have fallen asleep.
“Here, honeycomb,” Mrs Gump placed a plate of stacked waffles, garnished with a
mix of berries. “Dig up.”
“Sehun?” Jule peeped into the kitchen and Sehun jolted up from his seat at once
before hurrying out of the kitchen. “Can we talk?”
“Yeah.” He straightened the hem of his mauve t-shirt as he followed Jule down
the hallway.
“I had the Restrainers you asked for ordered. They’ll be custom-made and
hopefully you’ll have them by tomorrow. And I also managed to get in contact
with Amber’s… secretary and he… she said that she’s free today. If it’s okay
with you, we can meet her today itself.”
“Of course, it’s okay with me,” he flashed a toothy smile. “I’m not doing
anything else today. And I want to solve this as soon as possible. How did you
manage to do all this stuff on such short notice?”
A complacent smile took form on Jule’s full lips as she shrugged. “I work
fast.”
“Yeah, I reckoned,” He chortled. “I can’t thank you enough for being here for
me,” he came to an abrupt halt at the foyer when he found Xiomara squirming and
yelping with her back held against Kai’s chest and head locked in Kai’s arm
while Kai had her ponytailed silver hair curled and gripped in one of his
fists. “What the—”
“Who’s the old grandpa now, huh?” Kai grunted into her ear as Xiomara clawed at
his arm around her neck and elbowed him in the ribs. Kai didn’t even flinch as
he yanked her hair lower.
“Ow, ow, ow! Okay! Okay!” she bellowed when her back started to arch.
“I thought it’ll be a good idea if Kai came along.” Jule said, diverting
Sehun’s attention.
“What?!”
With a troubled grin, she whispered, “If you’re going to peacefully negotiate
with the Snatchers, you should at least have a trump card up your sleeve.”
“I am not fond of this trump card being up my sleeve!” he hissed under his
breath and perked his head up when Kai approached him after releasing Xiomara.
“I heard that you’re going on a suicide mission.” Kai remarked, plunging his
hands into his faded blue jeans. Sehun took a moment to appreciate what was in
front of him. Kai was clad in a white V-neck t-shirt beneath the black and red
check fleece shirt with its sleeves rolled to his elbows. His hair was half
sticking up, half drooping down. He looked like a mess. A freaking hot mess.
“You’re not welcomed to join my mission,” Sehun spat and turned to Jule. “We
can ask Donghae to come along.”
“He’s a hothead.” Jule disagreed. “And I don’t think he’s the best peacemaker
out there.”
“Oh, and he is?!” he jerked his hand in Kai’s direction.
“You’re willing to ally with their enemy, Sehun. Bringing him along would send
a message. A strong one. Amber and her father would want to be on your side.
You want to show her that you trust her enough to not show up at her place with
a goddamn army. But you also need to be smart enough to make sure that you
bring someone like Kai along. He’s all the army you could need.”
Sehun sighed heavily. She had a good point. One that Sehun could not disagree
with. “I’m sure he’d rather stay home and babysit his boyfriend.”
“Whether you like it or not, I’m here for other purposes, too.” Kai countered.
“Shockers.” Sehun spat back, glaring straight into Kai’s eyes.
“You’re surely one to talk. I’m not the only one who’s being side-tracked here,
am I?”
Sehun fell silent, conscious of Jule’s presence.
“Wait, what’s going on over here?” Xiomara decided to interrupt when she had
recovered.
“You’re coming with me.” Sehun pointed to her before turning to Jule. “Does
anyone else know?”
“I informed Gwenna. She’s not feeling well. She said she’s fine with it so long
you bring some of the Minders along. But let’s not bring those Minders along.”
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
The dilapidated buildings and the cracking asphalt of the worn road looked like
they had been abandoned ages ago. Weeds and dirt adorned every inch of the
town. Sehun was not even sure if it were a town. The brownness of the old town
spelled out its age. The roofs of the buildings had caved in and the entire
town looked like it was about to collapse into chaos. It was forgotten. The
rotting wooden buildings added to the appalling view. All that Sehun had been
feasting his eyes on was trees and green. And now this sudden dullness and
acidic view blinded him for seconds.
“What is… this place?” he rasped, peering out the car’s window before glancing
to the rear-view mirror. Kai had one of his hands on top of the steering wheel
and the other on the gear stick, but his eyes were on the rear-view mirror,
staring at Sehun’s reflection for a moment before he reverted his focus to the
road jagged road. Sehun didn’t know why Kai volunteered to drive them there,
leaving all the Minders behind.
“It’s the Gawlreng. Most of the Snatchers live here after they were convicted
by the ministry. Past this town is Faiion’s Fort and some miles away is the
Sunless Market.” Xiomara elaborated beside him as Sehun stared at the heads
sticking out of the buildings, gawking at the sleek black SUV.
“This is it.” Jule said, pointing at the flat-like building and Kai pulled
over.
Everyone unfastened their seatbelts and Sehun noticed that Kai never even
fastened his in the first place. Rowdy. Scoffing mentally, Sehun unlatched the
door and exited the Chevrolet Tahoe. A gust of dry, hot wind burned his face as
the scorching sun set his cheeks on fire. How could it be this hot in spring?!
He wanted to tear his leather jacket away. He fought the urge to drag the
temperature of this place down and bit his tongue. When he looked around, he
found numerous pairs of eyes looking in his way. Many of them were angry.
“Come on.” Jule muttered as she led the way, carrying a file in her hand as
usual. She disappeared into the building before Xiomara. Sehun turned around
and almost bumped into Kai.
“You should get inside.” Kai’s voice was as scruffy as his jaw. Sehun fisted
his hands as he wondered how it would feel to skim that fine, almost invisible
line of stubble on Kai’s jaw.
“I thought Amber was like the leader or something.”
“She sort of is.”
“Then why is she… leaving in a dump like this?” Sehun jerked his thumb over his
own shoulder, at the building.
“Because not all of us are born with all the leisure you had, Sehun.” he
snorted as he lowered to one of his knees.
“What are you talking about? You’re the son of the woman who owns a freaking
castle!” he could see Kai smirking as he took hold of the shoelace of Sehun’s
boots. “What are you doing?” he asked calmly, tilting his head to the side as
he watched Kai tie his untied shoelace. His heart did many things to his brain
that instant, but he was not going to show it. Kai rose back to his full
height.
“I’m glad you’ve moved on,” he patted on Sehun’s shoulder before he brushed
past it and walked into the building. Sehun quickly followed behind. “It would
have been so damn annoying to have a kid chasing after me.”
“What?”
“I said I’m happy you found solace in a bodyguard your mother’s possibly
sleeping with.” He leapt up the stairs, leaving Sehun to gape at the bottom of
the dirty stairway of the brownish building.
“What the hell?!” he jogged after Kai. “He’s not… sleeping with my mother!”
“Well, it’s happened before,” Kai shrugged smugly as he led Sehun towards a
door. “And this is the result of it.” he prodded a finger into the back of
Xiomara’s shoulder and she spun around to scowl at him. Sehun raised a fist,
but dropped it when the door sprung open.
“Sorry, I was teaching my ferret to yodel while fluffing my shower cap.” Amber
panted and smiled breathlessly at Xiomara as she held the door open, clad in a
boyish oversized black t-shirt and shorts. Well, this was not how Sehun thought
he’d be meeting the girl who almost decapitated him last night.
“Hello, Amber,” Jule said with a plastic smile. “I’m Jule Vaughn. I’m from
the—”
“Fucking ministry. I know. You got the face and shitty tight clothes for it.
Come on in.” she shoved the door open and walked away. Kai waited until Sehun
had entered before he walked in and closed the door behind him. There were
exactly one bed, one table, one ancient TV, one small kid and thousands of
junks around the room.
Jule cleared her throat, looking a little flustered as she looked to Kai for
help. Heaving a sigh, Kai grabbed the sleeve of Sehun’s jacket and jerked him
forward. Sehun glared back at him before facing Amber who returned with a
bottle of beer in her hand. She took her seat in the chair and leaned back in
it before dropping her feet on top of the table. As she took a sip of the beer,
eyeing Xiomara who looked irritated beyond explanation with her eyebrows
furrowed and arms crossed, looking to everywhere but Amber.
“Who’s this cutie?” Jule asked, as if just to be polite, smiling to the little
girl who was cradling a brown ferret in her skirt.
“That’s my secretary. Careful, she bites.”
"I was... talking about the girl."
"Yeah, so am I."
The look on Jule’s face almost made Sehun laugh.
“So, what’s up?” she asked, shifting her gaze back to Sehun.
Kai nudged Sehun closer to her with a hand on Sehun’s ass and Sehun snarled
back at him, scowling hard. Then sighing, he took his seat on the chair across
Amber. “I believe I promised you something.”
“Yeah. And yet I don’t see a pretty blonde boy.”
“He’s not that pretty,” Sehun mumbled to himself before he sucked in a steady
breath and clasped his hands together on the table. “I’m all the pretty blonde
boy you need, Amber. Trust me. A… Blugger is a very small price to pay to get
yourself a golden ticket to get the hell out of here.”
Amber raised a brow and took another sip of the beer. “I’m listening.”
Sehun glanced back to Jule and returned his gaze to Amber. “My coronation is
around the corner. I’m… supposed to choose my Champions. And guess who’s first
on my candidate list.”
“I don’t know. Eddie Murphy?”
Sehun cringed. “No. It’s you.”
“Sehun!” Xiomara gasped as Jule’s jaw fell.
Amber lowered her legs from the table, looking genuinely enticed. “You’re
shitting me. He’s shitting me, isn’t he?”
“No, Amber. I’m not… shitting you.”
“Sehun, can I talk to you for—” Jule started but Sehun cut her off with a wave
of his hand.
“Let Ren go. And I'll get you a place in the mansion, right next to me.”
Amber’s parted lips and wide eyes signalled her shock.
“He’s gonna be one hell of a favourite for everybody.” He heard Kai whisper to
Jule behind him.
Chapter End Notes
     I'm back on Insta. (@/Radianzze)
     And thank you so much for all your wonderful comments ^^
***** Sh*t Just Went Down *****
Chapter Notes
See the end of the chapter for notes
“I’m not entirely sure everyone’s on board with you on that.” Amber stated,
eyeing Sehun with pure scepticism.
“Well, they don’t call the shots here. I do.” As soon as Sehun said it, he
heard Kai snort behind him.
“Is that why you brought him to intimidate me in case I don’t agree to shit?”
she cocked a brow, tapping her fingers on the wooden table.
“No, god no,” Sehun assured her. “He’s just a… part of a protection programme
deal. I promise. You can say no. But we won’t give you Ren back. This is your
only chance, Amber. You can choose to decline and keep trying to ambush us. But
I think you and I both know that your chances of going against all Ten of us
are rather slim—considering the fact that Faiion could soon be on our team as
well.”
Amber’s jaw flexed as she slumped back against the chair. “You’re a smooth
talker. I’ll give that to you. But how would I know you’d keep your end of the
bargain? What if you drive me straight into a trap?”
“If I wanted to do that, I would have done it the instant I stepped into this
town. But I want peace. From all sides. I think you already know that. I can
offer you amnesty for all your misdeeds and see to it personally that you are
reprieved by the ministry, too. Slowly, if things go well, I’ll find a solution
for this town and the Snatchers. I know that you do this for a living. Maybe
we’ll find some other way.”
He received a nod from her as she cast her eyes low. Then with a sigh, her head
shot up. “Look. It’s a fancy indenture you’re offering. But it’s not that
simple. Those people out there are my people. I can’t abandon them. We might be
criminals, but let’s face it. Who are our customers? Flairers. Common Flairers
like you lot. So pinning the entire shit on us is not fair. We’re not allowed
beyond the Sunless Market and if we tried to cross the boundary, we get
massacred by your Minders. Compared to the number of people you have killed, we
haven’t ruined that many lives.”
“The how the fuck are you planning to explain about what you’re doing to Ren?”
Kai growled, taking a step forward and Amber scowled up at him.
“He was one of the street gangs’ hamster. I don’t know anything about him. He’s
been here for as long as I can remember. He was their little experimental rat
even when I was 10. But here’s the thing, Kai. Kai, right? You know the truce
rules. You don’t mess with us, we don’t mess with you. The minute one of you
took what’s ours, we’re bound to get it back.”
“What you were doing was illegal,” Jule jumped in. “You’re not supposed to
experiment on non-Flairers.”
“That I know no shit of. I was ordered by my father most of the time. So, I
have no idea why a Pootle was brought to Gawlreng in the first place.”
There was a heated silence for a moment before Sehun decided to speak up again.
“You don’t have to do what your father says anymore, Amber. I’m sure I’m taking
a huge leap of faith over here, but I’m willing to take my chances if you are.”
Amber licked her lips and glanced out the window with a stressful expression
crossing her face. “They won’t agree to it.”
“You can make them agree to it. You claimed yourself as the leader.”
“Hm.” She rubbed her temples and hanged her head.
“I’ll let you sleep on it.” Sehun sighed and rose to his feet. When he turned
around, he was met with one shocked face, one annoyed face and one angered
face. Surprisingly enough, Kai’s was the annoyed, Xi’s was the angered and
Jule—the shocked. Nodding his head at Amber, Sehun pursed his lips tight and
started towards the door. Kai followed him at once as Xiomara and Jule fell
behind.
“You want to house a Snatcher. Have you completely lost it?” Kai hissed,
vaulting after Sehun down the stairs.
“At least I’m trying to do something which won’t involve violence.” Sehun
scoffed back at him, but he was forced to a halt when Kai caught his arm.
“You’re digging your own grave, Sehun.”
“I started to dig it the minute I met you, Kai.” He snarled back under his
breath and pulled his arm free before hurrying out of the building. The
smouldering spring sun could have set him ablaze as he stepped outside. With a
jerky stop, he froze with his fraught eyes scanned the men and women who stood
crowding the road ahead. So many pairs of eyes were scowling at him. An
uncountable sets of fists were clenched and ready. Knives, spikes, black
smokes, red whips, gold-plated arms, flaming eyes. Sehun took a step back, but
was obstructed by Kai’s chest which he gently pressed his back into. He felt
Kai’s steady heartbeats on his shoulder blade and swallowed.
“Don’t move. Don’t say anything stupid.” Kai whispered and his sharp breath
grazed the curve of Sehun’s ear.
“I wasn’t planning to anyway.” Sehun exhaled, keeping his face straight while
eyeballing the crowd that had the entire building surrounded. Then with a light
touch of his hand on the corner of Sehun’s waist, he pushed Sehun aside—just a
little so that he can put himself in front of Sehun. Behind them, Jule and
Xiomara had gone to a standstill, too. When Kai fished out the car keys from
his pocket, a couple of the Snatchers advanced a slow step forward.
“Knock it off!” Amber squawked, shoving past Sehun and Kai. “They’re not here
for a fight!” Her voice was loud enough for the entire town to hear.
“What do you mean, Amber?!” One of the men snapped. He had greyish-green fish
scales on his cheeks. “Why the hell are you not ripping their goddamn heads
already?! After they killed our people last night and also took our Blugger,
you’re speaking on their behalf?!”
Amber rolled her jaw. “Listen! They’ve offered us amnesty!”
“Not technically.” Jule interrupted.
“Okay, they’re willing to offer us amnesty! That means better life. Better
homes. We don’t have to live in this shithole anymore! So just listen to me!”
“Have you gone mad?!” a woman screeched, stepping forward with nails as sharp
as knives. Sehun gulped. His heart began to hammer in his chest. There was
danger. There was threat. His breath quickened. “Listen to you?! Are you even
listening to yourself?! First, they waltz into Gawlreng like they own this
place. Second, you’re siding with them?! Have you forgotten that they are the
reason we’re living off stealing Flairs?!”
“I’m not siding with them! But if you can just hear me out—”
“No!” the man with the fish scales launched himself forward and with just a
pump, Amber’s fists were ablaze, cracking with blue-grey veins protruding from
her forearm to the tip of her fingers. They were like ignited coals. Only much
more fascinating. The orange fists had a light shade red around them when Amber
stood her ground. The man stopped, frozen as he gaped at Amber. “Now you’re
going against your own kind to protect them?!”
“Oh, please,” she snorted. “I’m practically protecting you from them.”
That was the last straw. All at once lurched at them, pouncing them like
predators. Amber’s fists were the first line of defence. The second was Kai’s
unmerciful stomp on the guy’s chest which sent him flying back. Within seconds,
the entire place shattered into chaos. Sehun staggered to the side when Kai
grabbed hold of his arm and hauled him towards the SUV. “Get in the car!” he
released Sehun and spun around, plunging a stone-cold fist into a Snatcher’s
face before booting him in the guts. Sehun waited for Xiomara and Jule to climb
into the car before Sehun jumped into the front passenger seat.
“Kai!” he bellowed when he ran back to Amber who was struggling with the
Snatchers, trying to hold them back. “Shit. Should I just—”
“No, Sehun! Whatever you do, don’t lose control!” Jule rasped from behind. “We
weren’t supposed to be here and the last thing we need right now is to cause a
mess!”
“It already is a mess!” Just when Sehun raised his hand, Kai had planted his
knees and boots into a number of Snatchers and was already hauling Amber
towards the vehicle. As soon as Amber slid into the car, Kai got into the
driver’s seat and locked the doors. Only Jule yelped a little when one of the
bulky Snatcher banged his fists on the hood of the car. “Drive!” Sehun gasped
and Kai shifted the gear before he draped an arm over the shoulders of Sehun’s
seat and glanced back to pull the car out of there. He kept reversing the SUV
as the Snatchers shot all sorts of weapons in their way.
“Why is she coming along?!” Xiomara yapped.
“Because Sehun got her into this shit!” Kai barked back, gripping the steering
wheel hard when he looked to the front and spun the wheel, turning the car
around.
“I wasn’t actually thinking this would happen!” Sehun spat back.
“Can we just stop this blame game?!” Amber added.
“This is your fucking fault!” Xiomara shot at her at the backseat. “If you
hadn’t—” she was cut off with a gasp when Kai hit the brake and Sehun almost
slammed his face into the dashboard. Snatchers lined straight in a thick crowd
at the town’s exit, blocking the path.
“Can I run them through?” Kai asked, panting a little as he revved the engine.
“No!” Amber howled at the back.
“Jesusfucking Christ.” Groaning, Kai shifted the gear and stepped on it. Sehun
knew if he even tried to help right now, he would lose it completely. So he
braced himself, gripping onto the handle of the door as the SUV raced straight
before Kai yanked at the gear and turned the vehicle to the left. Sehun
clenched his eyes as Xiomara slurred out a string of swear words and when he
reopened them, Kai was driving through an alleyway. Kids and women scurried
like mice as their screams added to the cacophony.
“What are you doing?!” Sehun shot at Kai.
“Saving your damn life for the hundredth time! Still think you’re trying to do
something which doesn’t involve violence?!” his scowl almost threw Sehun’s
heart out. When Kai returned his attention back to the road, his eyes widened.
“Shit!”
He ran straight through a barb wire fence and rammed the car into the forest
that surrounded Gawlreng. The car bounded off the ground at a ramp-like bump
and when it crashed the dry forest’s floor, Sehun’s head banged into the roof
of the SUV as Amber cursed out loud. “Oh, my god where are you going?!” Jule
gasped breathlessly.
“I don’t actually have a navigation plan ready right off the bat!”
“Couldn’t you have just used your creepy Flair instead?!” Xiomara hissed.
“I can’t focus on two hundred people all at once while singling four people
out!”
“That’s pretty lame.”
Sehun noticed Kai’s jaw tighten, but before Kai could retort, Amber burst into
a yawp. “Look out, Sehun!” Kai acted first before Sehun even managed to turn
his head when his side of the car’s door was ripped open, disjointed from the
vehicle by a monstrous flail. The metal spikes pierced through the door,
tearing it away as Kai’s arm secured Sehun around the waist, yanking Sehun
closer to him.
“That’s it.” Sehun growled with blood pounding in his ears. He shoved his hands
out and tightened his knuckles as if he was gripping air and used the scorching
sun’s heat to burn the foliage on the forest. The fire raced when he gushed the
wind in the Snatcher that was chasing after them at the speed of a stallion,
carrying a flail. He must have more than one Flair injected into him.
“Sehun!” Jule screamed when the fire engulfed the Snatcher, trailing him
everywhere he ran.
“No, Kai! You need to stop! There’s a cliff at the edge of Gawlreng!” Amber
warned in a desperate cry. Kai did not pay any heed to her warning until they
were only several feet away from the cliff she was talking about.
Another set of screams followed when Kai halted the car out of the sudden when
the front of the car, the engine and the hood and half of the tyres were cut
apart by a red flare like a laser. Sehun jumped off the SUV first before he
yanked the door open to assist Xiomara out. Her forehead was flaming purple
along with her fists, ready for a fight. Sehun spun around to meet the two
buff, heavily tattooed Snatchers emerging from the trees. One of them had
brilliant red eyes which looked like they were on fire. When Sehun glanced
back, Kai and Amber were facing a couple of other Snatchers on the other side
of the car. Jule stayed in the car, trembling like a leaf.
“You take the short one, I take the red eyes?” Xiomara asked, flexing her
flaming hands. Then without a forewarning, the Snatchers broke into a sprint
towards them, exploding into a rumbling war cry. Xiomara launched herself at
the Snatcher with the laser beam eyes first and drove her purple fires straight
into his face, blinding him. As the Snatcher staggered back, bursting into a
scream, Sehun threw his hand up before yanking it all the way down, dropping to
one of his knees, dragging a lightning from the perfectly fine sky. Behind
them, Amber and Kai were battling the other two Snatchers. The lightning that
struck the Snatcher was followed by an ear-deafening thunder. Within mere
seconds, bullets of rain shattered on the ground. Sehun turned to the Snatchers
Kai and Amber were struggling with. His vision turned almost entirely grey but
Sehun had his targets locked. With a wave of his hands, as soon as Kai had
retreated, Sehun enwrapped the Snatchers in a whirlpool of the rainwater.
“Stop, Sehun! That’s enough!” he heard Kai’s order as a faint whisper in the
back of his head. He was aware of the rain that soaked him from top to toe. But
everything else was just grey. He wanted to kill the Snatchers. Drown them.
Suffocate them. Destroy them.
The cry that snapped his head back to colours was Xiomara’s when she was hurled
over the cliff by the Snatcher and Sehun turned his Flair off altogether. Kai
turned to the Snatcher at once as Amber threw herself off the cliff and caught
Xiomara’s hand, but with a loud grunt she slid off the cliff along with Xi and
Sehun, without sparing another second or even rethinking it twice, jumped and
caught Amber’s forearm. A scream escaped his lips when a joint in his arm
almost disjointed and Amber’s ignited arm burned his palm. The rainwater ran
down the cliff made the rocks Sehun was bracing his knees on slippery and he
slipped forward but before he could fall, Kai grabbed him by his jacket’s
collar at the back and yanked him back. Even when he had caught Amber’s hand,
Sehun refused to let go off her arm. Jule had also come to help but right now,
she knelt, looking unsure of whom she should grab. “She’s slipping!” Amber
cried painfully, still holding onto Xi. Kai groaned like a beast as he single-
handedly pulled Amber up, although Sehun tried to grip onto her before he
reached a hand down for Xiomara to grab onto.
“Xi!” he wailed as his sister extended her hand to catch Sehun’s.
As soon as Amber climbed to the top, Kai easily grabbed Xiomara’s arm and
pulled her up. She dropped right onto him and they stayed that way for a moment
with Xi laying on top of Kai, catching their breaths, sobbing for air in the
rain. “What the hell were you thinking?!” Amber yelled at Sehun. “My flare
doesn’t work and neither does hers in water!”
Sehun’s eyes widened as he panted. “I… I didn’t know. I didn’t think…”
Amber gasped for air, standing on her fours. Only after a moment did Xiomara
get off Kai and she paused to stare at Amber with beads of rainwater dripping
off her face. Then without a word, she rose to her feet and shakily walked
away.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
“You did not only put all of your lives in danger, but you also broke so many
fucking accords with the Snatchers! How the fuck do you expect me to understand
any of this?!” Mark had never raised his voice this high before. Sehun was not
sure if he were shaking from the cold rainwater that had seeped into his
clothes and hair or Mark’s ferocity. Surprisingly, Donghae stood silent behind
Mark, wearing a concerned expression on his face. “And to top it all off, you
brought home a Snatcher! Not just any Snatcher, but Rogue’s daughter! What the
hell were you thinking, Sehun?! Do you think you’re so damn smart that you can
get away with anything?! There are rules that you should follow and when you
don’t, this is what happens! How are you going to explain this to the ministry,
huh?! How the fuck do you think they will wipe this off their blacklist?! You
can fucking kiss your coronation goodbye!”
Sehun kept his head hung as he stood at the foyer, shivering with his clothes
sticking to his skin like a second skin.
“And you!” he turned to Jule. “Was assisting him out of the mansion ever on
your job description?! I don’t care what your father says or what the ministry
says. You’re fired! And Xiomara! You of all these people should know better!
You’ve seen things. You’ve been taught enough! You know what’s right and what’s
wrong! And you have to play by the goddamn rules!”
“Maybe I don’t want to!” Xiomara burst after almost an hour of silence. Mark’s
mouth was left hanging open as he blankly blinked at her.
“What did you say?”
“Yes! We might have died today! But ask any of us if we regret what we did
today. We don’t. We fucking don’t, okay, Mark?! What have we been doing all
these years?! Training to be part of the Ten! To support the Four! Then what?
Things will be just as shitty! This place will still be a hellhole and we’ll
all just stay in here, scared of Faiion, scared of the Snatchers, scared of the
non-Flairers, scared of the ministry even we’re practically the strongest
people in this world! You and I both know that we want this feud to end. None
of you had the balls to do it. Sehun does. But you can’t deal with it because
you’re too scared you’ll lose your position as the big boss because you fucking
know he can lead. And he delivers. Yeah. We could have died. Who the fuck
cares, huh? What mattered today was that Faiion’s right-hand man, the
Snatcher’s leader, the ministry’s envoy and me, one of the Ten all joined
hands. All because of Sehun. What more evidence do you need, Mark? He’s doing
it. He’s bringing us Flairers together. He did something none of us could do.
So give him some fucking credit and a bloody break.” With that, she shoved past
Mark and broke into a jog up the stairs.
Sehun had not processed half of what Xiomara had just said, but Mark certainly
must have as he fell dead silent and turned around before he walked away. Jule
finally breathed and soused in rain from head to toe, she shook her head and
let herself out. Donghae uncrossed his arms and stepped up to Sehun. “You
survived. You came home alive. That’s enough,” he sighed and patted on Sehun’s
shoulder before brushing past him. “And Xi’s right, you know.” He stated with
half a smile before he disappeared into the hallway. Heaving a sigh, Sehun wove
his way to the waiting area next to the foyer and found Amber standing by the
window wall with her arms hugging her body.
“Hey.”
She glanced over to Sehun and shot him a suppressed smile. “So… Do I have a
home or not?”
Sehun let out a chuckle. “You do. Um… if you don’t mind, can you… change in my
room first? I’ll get someone to arrange a room for you soon.”
Amber nodded and Sehun led her to his room. He stopped at the door after
unlatching it. “Now I know why you’re all good looking.” She snorted, looking
around the room.
“There’s clothes in the wardrobe. Fresh towels on the shelf in the bathroom.
I’ll… I’ll go and see if Mrs Gump can whip something up for us.”
“All right.”
Smiling, Sehun shut the door behind him and sucked in a shaky breath. He needed
to get out of these clothes. He froze in his tracks when he saw Kai walking in
his way down the hallway—still wearing his drenched white V-neck t-shirt and
red and black checked fleece shirt. His wet hair was pushed back all the way
but some were still sticking up. “Donghae shifted Ren into that room?” Kai
asked nonchalantly as if nothing had happened and he had just come back from a
two-day vacation.
Sehun tried his best to not to scowl, but his best wasn’t good enough. When Kai
stopped before him, Sehun turned on his heel to walk away, but he came to a
halt. Closing his eyes, he drew in some breaths before turning around to meet
Kai’s eyes. “We almost died today, didn’t we?”
“You, Amber and Xiomara almost did. Pretty sure Jule and I were safe.” He
shrugged and Sehun was lost for a moment. He didn’t know how to respond to that
smug smirk of Kai’s. He walked away before he could slap that smirk off Kai’s
face. But before he could descend down the stairway, Kai’s harsh grip yanked
him through a doorway next to the stairs. Only when Kai had shut and locked the
door did Sehun realize it was a room filled with old paintings. Frames and
portraits were scattered all over the closet-sized room. Sehun had walked past
it many times, but he had always assumed the door was locked like the others.
“Tell me.” Kai breathed, taking a few steps closer and Sehun recoiled,
retreating to the wall behind him.
“Tell you w-what?”
“What was Chanyeol doing in your bed this morning?”
Sehun cocked an eyebrow. “Why do you care? It’s absolutely none of your
business.”
“I make everything regarding you my business, Sehun. That way, I can keep you
alive.”
Sehun scoffed and arrogantly looked away, vacantly fixing his gaze on the old
painting of hydrangeas on the floor. “Keeping me alive isn’t your business
either.”
Kai took another step closer and Sehun withdrew until he was pressed against
the wall. His heart skipped a beat when Kai raised his hands to the wall,
nailing them to either sides of Sehun’s head. “When I lost Ren… a part of me
died, too. I wanted to keep him safe. I wanted to protect him,” his voice
ridiculously low that Sehun barely heard it. Their clingy wet clothes made the
inch that was distancing their damp, burning bodies even more unbearable. “But
I know you don’t need my protection. You… you’ll probably survive with just
that pretty mouth of yours.”
Sehun almost smiled at that. Almost. But he held onto his scowl. “I don’t know
what you’re driving at.”
“You didn’t let me finish last night.”
“After you kissed me and said that you love Ren?”
Kai’s parted lips as his eyes fell to Sehun’s lips. Then while shedding his
fleece shirt, Kai slowly leaned in until his breath was caressing Sehun’s
bottom lip. “Answer my question. What was Chanyeol doing in your bed this
morning?” he asked slowly, as if he was spelling the words out.
“You said you’re relieved. So that I won’t be chasing after you. Why does it
matter, then?” Sehun was choking back on an embarrassing moan. He could barely
keep a straight face with the man of his dreams this close. Once he had dropped
the fleece shirt to the floor, Kai casually worked on his belt’s buckle.
Sehun’s heart stopped beating when he felt Kai’s warm lips press against the
corner of his jaw. He tilted his head, giving into Kai’s kiss and closed his
eyes. He heard Kai unbuckling his belt as he sloppily dragged his lips along
Sehun’s jaw and neck.
Chapter End Notes
     You think we can get LN to 1500 kudos by the end of this month?
***** Rude Awakening *****
Chapter Notes
See the end of the chapter for notes
“I can’t seem to take my mind off you,” Kai’s gruff voice kissed the side of
his neck. Sehun swallowed, clenched his eyes tighter and threw his head back
against the wall to arch his neck into Kai’s burning lips. “The thought of you…
keeps me sane,” he whispered with his lips skimming Sehun’s earlobe before he
kissed and gently sucked it. Sehun silently gasped with his mouth agape, trying
to even his breathing, but it was near to impossible. Kai’s demanding fingers
lingered on the side of Sehun’s waist under his damp t-shirt while his teeth
grazed Sehun’s earlobe and the skin below it. “But not all my thoughts of you
are good,” Kai kissed along the vein down Sehun’s neck. Sehun entangled his
slender fingers in the wet strands of Kai’s hair. “I’m sure some of them are
even illegal in some countries.”
Sehun bit his smiling lower lip as his chest heaved. He had no fight left
within him. He did want Kai. More than he would ever like to admit. But Kai
needed to know that he was not an easy prey. He needed a taste of his own
medicine. Sehun’s eyes flashed open to meet Kai’s parted lips and desperate
gaze sheening with lust. “Oh, yeah?” he exhaled, draping an arm loosely around
Kai’s neck while fisting a handful of Kai’s hair. Kai slid his hands down to
the back of Sehun’s thighs and clawed at them, digging his fingernails into the
thick flesh of his thighs. The white t-shirt that was sticking to Kai’s bronze
skin caught Sehun’s breath. He wanted to taste every inch of that beautifully
toned, caramel body. He licked his lips when Kai pressed their chests together.
“Why don’t you tell what sort of illegal thoughts you have?” He breathed
against Kai’s hungry lips when Kai hoisted one of his legs up and lazily
wrapped it around his hip with his hand supporting Sehun’s thigh. Sehun’s head
swam with the heat of Kai’s crotch against his own.
“Hmm… you really want to hear it?” Kai cocked his head and kissed Sehun’s
protruding Adam’s apple. “Maybe I’ll just show you,” he whispered against
Sehun’s collarbone. “So hard and painful that you will never forget it.”
“I bet you never did anything like that to your precious, fragile little
loverboy.”
Kai pulled his head back and stared right into Sehun’s eyes. Sehun tightened
his arms around Kai’s neck.
“Don’t worry about it. I’m cool with it. It doesn’t matter anyway.”
Kai dropped Sehun’s leg. “You think I want to just fool around?” he scowled.
“Duh? Would there be any other reason why you’d have your hands all over a guy
who’s not your boyfriend in a closet? Like I said. It doesn’t matter. We can
just do whatever you want and then you can go back to the love of your life.
And I’ll continue with my life. That’s what you want, right? And I’m all on
board. I can wake up in the morning and pretend that it never happened.” Sehun
shrugged and leaned into Kai’s lips.
Kai pulled away altogether and pressed himself against the shelf behind him
before their lips could even touch. “This person you’re trying to be,
Sehun—it’s not who you are.”
Sehun snorted and let out a dry laugh. “Really? By this person you mean the guy
who can’t give two dragging damns about who he takes to bed?”
“The guy who doesn’t care about principles.”
“Wow! You’re surely one to talk about principles.” He scoffed, shaking his head
with a mocking snigger.
“Oh, stop it,” he snarled. “If this is about Ren, then you need to just lay
off, all right?”
“Of course it’s about Ren! He came back. You started to avoid me. Then you find
out he can’t remember shit about you. You came back to me. You said that you
love him. But you kissed me. And I don’t even know what you’re planning to do
in here! If you love him, stop jerking me around!”
“I’m not jerking you around. I… I won’t be giving you this much attention if I
didn’t want…” he trailed off, letting out an exasperated breath. “You don’t
have to hate Ren.”
Sehun outright laughed. “No, Kai. I don’t hate him. I like him. He’s nothing
but a puppy that found its way to a new home. What I hate is how indecisive you
are and how much of a prick you are.”
“You think I can’t decide?”
“Well, why don’t you share what your decision is, then?”
Kai with a lockjaw, glared at Sehun. “I need you to understand, Sehun. I want
Ren to recover first. I want him to get better. And I can’t focus on both of
you at the same time. I want to be there for Ren, but I can’t do that when
you’re going on suicidal sprees and sleeping around with the guards. You’re
being such a pain in the ass. I can’t keep one eye on Ren while keeping the
other on you. Why can’t you be understanding? I’m trying to figure things out,
okay? You keep pushing me and pushing me.”
Sehun arched a brow. “Whoa. No one asked you to look out for me. So, you want
me to wait until your boyfriend recovers and remembers you. Until then I’m a
substitute, am I right? When he comes back to you, you can get rid of me. All
over again.”
“That’s not what I—”
“For all that I care right now, Kai, you can crawl back to your boyfriend, all
right? Like you said. I won’t be chasing after you anymore and you don’t really
have to give a fuck about me. You came here as Faiion’s representative. Just
try to do your job while you’re coddling your boyfriend, okay?” he extended a
hand to the doorknob but Kai’s seized his arm.
“If you walk away right now, Sehun, I swear to god that’ll end everything
between us.”
“There is nothing between us, Kai. Don’t you see that? You don’t want anything
to be between us. Before Ren showed up, you couldn’t let go of him. So, you
kept me at bay. Now that he’s back, you definitely don’t want something solid
between us. And contrary to what you believe, I do understand. Which is why I
want this to stop before I fall too deep and hurt myself too bad. I appreciate
what you’re doing for me, Kai. But let’s face it. Even if Ren couldn’t remember
you, you would love him all the same. And I’m not Ren. I’m not that fragile
little pup that you want to protect so badly. So don’t worry about me. I won’t
lie. I wanted us to be something. But you won’t let me in. You don’t want to
let me closer. Just… let go, Kai,” he sighed. “I have never fallen for anyone.
So, this hurts for me. But I can’t afford to… sulk over you, Kai. I won’t say
I’m entirely happy for you and Ren. But if things work out for you, I guess
I’ll learn to let go. I have to go.”
Kai did not stop him when Sehun walked out of the room. His heart was at his
throat and as soon as Sehun was several feet away from the room, he swallowed
back a sob and quickly wiped the tear bead that started to trickle down the
corner of his eye.
 
 
 
“Do you believe in afterlife?” Xiomara asked, her tone hinted the fatigue her
body was in. She nuzzled closer to her brother, resting her head on Sehun’s
stretched arm on the bed. Sehun exhaled loudly through his nostrils and droned.
He had bathed and changed into fresh dry clothes, had a light dinner and saw to
it that Amber was comfortable in his room before he invaded Xiomara’s room to
stay the night. He stared at the glimmering stars that adorned the ceiling of
Xi’s black-grey room along with his sister. It was the first time Sehun had
seen Xi in a baggy t-shirt and shorts with her hair untied.
“Why are you asking?” he asked in a low voice.
“I’ve never been afraid of death. But… today when I was—”
“I put you in danger. It was my fault.”
“No, it wasn’t,” she raised her head and pressed a hand to Sehun’s chest before
shifting a little to face her brother. “Don’t beat yourself up for that,
Sehun.”
“Well, it was my brilliant idea to drive us into that trap, wasn’t it?” he
rolled his eyes. “And now Amber is an exiled outcast. How ironic is that?”
Xiomara fell silent for a moment as she aimlessly stared at her hand on Sehun’s
chest. “I can’t… believe she went after me.”
“If Kai hadn’t been there, we would all be dead now.”
“Big brother,” she frowned and nestled her head under Sehun’s chin, lying on
Sehun’s sternum. “It’s been a shitty day, hasn’t it?”
“It has,” He pressed his lips to the top of Xi’s head. “I… ended things with
Kai.”
“What?”
“He still loves Ren. But… I’m scared he’s falling for me, too. I don’t want him
to be torn between us both. He’s not a bad guy, Xi. He’s been hurt a lot. So,
if he wants to be with Ren, then I don’t want to be a stumbling block. I don’t
want to hold him back. I want him to be… happy. I mean I’m still young and I
have a whole life ahead of me. Kai doesn’t need to waste his life with a… kid.”
Xiomara brought her head up and pinned Sehun with a miserable frown. “You
really like him, don’t you?”
Sehun pursed his lips and shrugged. “He’s… okay, I guess.”
“Uh-huh.” She resettled on Sehun’s chest and heaved a sigh of relief, hugging
Sehun’s body.
“You know, I’m happy I have you in my life.”
“I know.”
“You’re pretty awesome.”
“I know that too.”
“And I know you’re happy I’m in your life.”
“Hm. Don’t flatter yourself, dork,” she snorted. “So… Is she going to live with
us from now?”
“Who? Amber?”
“Yeah.”
“Jule said she’ll take care of it. I trust her. And maybe you can be nicer to
Amber?”
He received no response from Xi.
 
 
 
“And then Kai saved you?!” Jungkook gasped when they reached the bottom of the
stairs. Xiomara was back to her usual shape and Sehun was trying his best to
not to let yesterday’s unfortunate events bother him anymore. It was a new day
and he had billion things to do according to Jule when she practically dragged
Sehun out of bed this morning. He had no idea how Jule could be so dedicated to
her work that she showed up to it at all today.
“Yeah. He pulled us all up.” Xi said tiredly.
“I can’t believe you tried to get yourselves killed two days in a row!”
“Well, perks of living with this son of a gun here.” She clapped a hand to
Sehun’s back.
“In all fairness, what happened at the barrier was not because of me.” Sehun
spat, weaving his way to the drawing room. Just when they entered the hallway,
he came to an abrupt halt. Kai stopped in his tracks before he could bump into
Sehun.
“We’ll see you in the drawing room.” Xiomara blurted out and hauled Jungkook
away. Plunging his hands into the pockets of his pants, Sehun pursed his lips
and flashed a very brief, suppressed smile.
“Hey.” They said in unison and Sehun silenced himself. “Dee and I are leaving
tomorrow.” Kai said after a while and Sehun nodded his head curtly.
“All right. I hope… you will be able to convince Faiion.”
“I will. What you’re doing is good, Sehun. We’ve all lost too much because of
this feud between them both. You need to show them both that you’re not an
object or a weapon for them to fight over you. But you also need to understand
that you will be choosing a side nevertheless. If you choose to join us, I can
assure you that you won’t regret it. But if you choose to stay with Gwenna,
then I know you’ll survive. Because, Sehun, you’re by the far the smartest…
kindest person I know.”
Sehun smiled wider and this time, his smile was sincere. “And… you will be here
for my coronation, right?”
“I’ll see you before that. I heard you’re crashing FLAC’s Spring Ball,” Kai
smirked. “I’ll see you then.”
“Well, you’re not supposed to know that,” Sehun chuckled. “And what about…
Ren?”
Kai heaved a loud sigh and crossed his arms over his chest. “I’ll come back for
him when he’s ready to hear me out.”
Sehun nodded and shot Kai half a smile before brushing past him. Did Kai know
that Ren was already trusting Donghae? It was none of Sehun’s business.
Everything concerning Kai was none of his business now. He could feel Kai’s
gaze on the back of his neck as he walked away. A couple of Minders trod past
him before Sehun spotted Xiomara, Jungkook, Yixing and Dee standing outside the
drawing room. Another pair of Minders passed him before he heard the desperate
call.
“Sehun!” Chanyeol yapped with Heva beside him as soon as his eyes landed on
Sehun and Sehun’s heart swelled when Chanyeol jogged up to him at once before
engulfing him in an aggressive embrace. “Jesus Christ, I was worried sick about
you.” He withdrew and cupped Sehun’s face in his two hands. His dark eyes
spelled out his concern loud and clear. When Sehun’s eyes darted over
Chanyeol’s shoulder, everyone was staring if not gaping.
“I’m fine, Chanyeol. I’m alive.” Sehun recoiled from his hands. Not here.
Chanyeol dropped his hands to his sides, frowning a little. “I’m not letting
you out of my sight again.”
I don’t want you to. Sehun smiled and Chanyeol looked pleasantly surprised.
“Okay, please tell me I didn’t wake up this early to have an ice-breaking
gathering.” Amber remarked, deliberately yawning loudly as she sauntered into
the hallway.
It went so silent that one could have heard a pin drop. The door of the drawing
room sprung open after a moment and Jule requested everyone to enter. An
assortment of breakfast meals was spread on the table as Gwenna was gracefully
seated on the piano bench. “Mark and Donghae?” she asked.
“Uh, Mark passed,” Yixing said. “And Donghae has… errands to run.” Sehun
wondered if the errands had something to do with Ren.
Gwenna sighed and rose to her full height. “Please, take your seats. Even you
Amber.”
Once everyone was settled at the table, Amber let out a long whistle, eyeing
the food on the table. “I could seriously get used to this.”
Sehun glanced to Heva and Chanyeol who were standing by the door. Chanyeol had
his eyes fixed on Sehun although his expression was a blank slate. Sehun threw
him a subtle smile. I want to see you in my room tonight. Chanyeol bit his lip
before he provided a stealthy nod.
“Something atypical has happened in this mansion,” Gwenna announced with Jule
standing next to her. “Never in my life had I even dreamed of housing the
Snatcher’s leader. But my son has made this possible. He has brought my
daughter home, too,” she looked to Dee and smiled a motherly smile. “You have
all proven that your generation does not bear the animosity and jealousy mine
did.”
Sehun shot his gaze to Kai on the other side of the table. Kai’s attention was
on Gwenna.
“I will see to it personally that you are amnestied, Amber,” Gwenna continued.
“Until then, you are welcomed here.”
Amber bowed her head. “Thanks, Mrs G. You’re pretty dope.”
 
 
 
“Sehun, where are you going?” Jule called after him and Sehun looked back at
her.
“Is there something else you need?” He was dead beat. It had been a long day
and it had been almost impossible to focus on all the legal details Jule had
been sawing him with since the breakfast while having Kai in the same room.
Besides sifting through final details of the negotiation deals, Sehun also had
to find Amber a room, sign almost two hundred copies of his coronation
invitation and personally contact the ministry regarding the appointment of
Amber as his Champion.
“No, not really. Are you okay? You didn’t seem like you were okay back in
there.”
Sehun rubbed the back of his sore neck. “It’s nothing like that. I’m a little
tired. I’m just gonna hit the bed early tonight. I have classes tomorrow.”
“Oh. All right. Here.” She handed him a box.
Sehun scrutinized the red box with a cocked eyebrow. “What is this?”
“It’s the… Restrainer you asked for.”
“Oh, my god. Thank you, Jule.”
She smiled and bowed her head before brushing past Sehun. As he wended his way
to his room, Sehun opened the box and pulled out the black wristbands. Sporting
them around his wrists, he continued up the flight of stairs. When he entered
his room, he found Chanyeol perched on the edge of his bed. With a corner of
his lips quirked up, Sehun abandoned the box on a side table and walked over to
Chanyeol. “So, Kai’s leaving.” Chanyeol sighed when Sehun climbed onto him,
kneeling on either sides of Chanyeol. He planted his hands into Chanyeol’s hair
and leaned down to press his lips upon Chanyeol’s. When he broke the chaste
kiss, Chanyeol smiled at him with his eyes closed.
“I don’t care anymore.” Sehun whispered.
“You sure?”
“Chanyeol… I want us to work. I want this to work. Yes, I did want Kai. But he
didn’t want me. Not the way I deserve. So…” he brushed his forehead against
Chanyeol’s. “I don’t want to think about him. I want to think about you.” he
lowered to sit on Chanyeol’s lap.
“You chose that Snatcher as your Champion, huh?”
Sehun drew his face back and smirked at Chanyeol. “Jealous much?” he hummed,
carding his fingers through Chanyeol’s hair. “I don’t want you to be my
Champion, Chanyeol. Well, not in that sense at least.” He licked his smirking
lips, leaning further in and that was when Chanyeol flopped him onto the bed.
Sehun laughed, trapped beneath Chanyeol. “Chanyeol?”
“Hm?” he droned, gazing into Sehun’s eyes.
“Let’s take it slow. Let’s… get to know each other better first. You know
everything about me. I want to know more about you.”
Chanyeol tilted his head and kissed Sehun’s lips before quickly pulling back.
“Your wish is my command, my prince.”
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
                            I N T E R M I S S I O N
                                        
                                        
===============================================================================
                                        
                                        
“How many times do I have to tell you, Shixun? You’re going to get yourself
killed one day!”
Shixun tried his best to not to roll his eyes. Well, he tried and failed.
His father threw his hands up in defeat, growling like an animal. He had just
taken a shower, Shixun acknowledged. “Don’t fucking give me that attitude.”
Shixun glanced to the guard who had spilled the beans when Faiion threatened to
crack his skull open.
“Oh, don’t glare at him, you rascal!” his father hissed.
“Dad, I’m not dead. So, can we all just move on? I’m starving.” He unzipped the
leather gloves as he shoved past Faiion who defiantly grabbed his arm.
“When you do get killed one day, I won’t hold any responsibility for it.”
“When I get killed and hit Hell, I’ll give Satan a heads up that you’re on your
way.” Shixun helplessly rolled his eyes again and yanked his arm free.
“What Satan? You’re the only Satan I know.” The man snorted and Shixun spun
around before bowing to his father. Faiion shook his head in disappointment and
hurled the towel that was hanging around his neck in Shixun’s way. “Take a
goddamn shower. You smell like ass piss.”
Shixun grabbed the towel and worked his way to his room. The citadel was almost
as old as FLAC’s castle. The hallways were aged and dark. But Shixun had gotten
used to them. He had gotten used to this gloomy fortress. But it had never been
this quiet. He looked to the torchlights that lit his way. His shoulder joints
were sore and he knew some part of his body was bruising, but he was too tired
to scrutinize.
A servant bowed her head as she exited the room when he opened the door before
she whimpered when he slapped her butt. Then smirking to her, he leaned down
and whispered to her. “Bathroom. Ten minutes. Don’t make me wait.”
She nodded her head shakily before scurrying away.
“You… are fuckin’ unbelievable.” Only then did he notice the intruder in his
room who rose from his bed.
“Kris!” Shixun gasped as his jaw dropped to the ground. “What are you doing
here?!” grinning from ear to ear, he galloped across the room and almost
launched himself onto Kris, but stopped when he realized his face and hands
were not covered. “Sorry.” He laughed.
Kris’ face died a little, but he smiled. “I just had some time. So I snuck
out.”
Shixun bit his grinning lip and unzipped his jacket. “Well, this is a pleasant
surprise.”
“You sure?” Kris asked as Shixun walked past him to peel off his jacket and
threw it onto the chair by his desk. “Am I not bothering a blowjob or
something?”
Shixun scoffed. “I wish. Unless she wants her mouth bleeding, I don’t think
she’ll do anything more than just a striptease.” He turned and faced his best
friend with a smug smile. He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against
the back of the chair.
“What was Faiion nagging you about this time?” he inquired, crossing the room
as he approached Shixun. His hair was longer than the last time Shixun had seen
it. He looked taller, but that was hardly possible.
“I was fighting a couple of street Snatchers. No big deal.” He shrugged
nonchalantly.
“By a couple, you mean?”
Shixun licked his lips. “Four to five.”
“Forty-five?! Are you barking mad?!” he came so close that Shixun pressed his
palms to Kris’ chest to maintain the distance. Kris held his ground and Shixun
lowered his hands.
“Four. To. Five.” He averted his gaze when Kris began to glower.
“Shixun—” he exhaled, lifting a hand, but Shixun cut him off and shoved past
him.
“Will you look at the time?! I’m famished. Are you staying for dinner?” he
turned his back to Kris and clenched his eyes and teeth. It quietened. When the
moment had passed, Shixun felt a warm hand on the side of his waist. Shixun let
out a silent trembling breath when Kris lowered his hand down his waist, over
the protective layer of his clothes. “Don’t, Kris.” He whispered and pulled
away from Kris before facing him. “Don’t touch… me.”
Kris rubbed his temples and let out an exhausted sigh. “I don’t get it, Shixun.
Do you not want me to touch you because you don’t want to hurt me or because
you don’t want me?”
“Kris, do you seriously think I care about not hurting you? Boy, you’re
deluded.”
Kris’ jaw tightened. “You know what. Fine. I came all the way here to see you.
But have it your way,” he started for the door with his fists clenched at his
sides. He stopped by the doorway and paused for a minute. “I want you to come
to the Spring Ball with me.”
Shixun deliberately snorted louder than necessary. “Do you want me to take you
to prom, darling? Sweep you off your feet?”
“You seriously need to stop hanging around with Kai,” he groaned, shaking his
head. “Shixun, it’s a masquerade theme. I want to dance with you. I want to
take you to the ball.”
Shixun’s heart hammered against his chest. He slid his hands into the pockets
of his pants. “I’m not gonna be your date, Kris.”
“Come as my friend, then. Nobody will know you’re there. You can’t be cooped up
in here all day every day.”
“For your information, I do go out.”
“And look for trouble or have your nose broken,” he sighed. “Stop pushing me
away, Shixun. I really don’t fucking mind being cut a thousand times if I’ll
get to hold you even for a second. Why can’t you understand that?”
Shixun remained mum with his lips pursed tight.
“Tuesday. It starts at 7.” With that, Kris disappeared.
Chapter End Notes
     OMG THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR 1500 KUDOS!!! T_____T I SAID END OF THE
     MONTH BUT YOU GUYS GOT LN TO 1500 KUDOS IN ONE FREAKING DAY!!! YOU
     GUYS ARE AWESOME!
***** Audacious Orders *****
“And there you go.” Sehun handed Clark the pen and the document with a
painfully wide smile plastered to his face.
“Thank you very much, Sehun,” the fifth division minister mirrored Sehun’s grin
as he accepted the document. “That’ll be all then, son. I am looking forward to
your coronation next week. I can see that the preparations are going wild in
here. And I must say, it has to be the grandest ceremony there has been in the
Flairers’ community for a very long time. The last was your parents’ wedding.”
Sehun held onto the smile as he assisted the minister to the front door. “I
have to be honest, though. I am a little nervous. There’s gonna be so many
people. And I can’t go back from there. Once I accept this responsibility,
there’s no returning, is there?”
Clark clapped a hand to Sehun’s arm and patted it twice. “If your father can do
it at the age of 17, you can, too.”
“Yeah. But apparently my father had help. My mother. Allis. Dillan.”
One of the Minders held the door open as Clark stepped outside. “Sehun, you
have something that neither Faiion nor the others had.”
Sehun cocked a brow at the minister.
“You’ve got the kindness of a child and the shrewdness of a young leader. This
community could use a fresher perspective and that is exactly why you’re in
demand.”
Sehun’s heart softened. “Thanks, Clark.”
“No problem. I’ll see you next week then, Sehun.”
When Sehun turned on his heel, the Minders quickly shut the door behind him. He
was grounded. Yes, he was freaking grounded. For some odd reason, he took
pleasure from it. Gwenna cared enough to ground him after the impetuous act
with the Snatchers the other week. She had asked him to bring some Minders
along and he had disobeyed that order. She must have been worried about him.
“Is he gone?” Jule asked, descending the stairs and Sehun came to a stop on his
way to the kitchen.
“Yeah. Just signed some stuff.”
“Oooh,” she cooed, stopping a couple of feet before Sehun and crossed her arms
over her chest. “Some stuff, huh? You’re sure that’s a smart move?”
Sehun smirked and sniggered, sliding his hands into the pockets of his tight
jeans. “I’m pretty sure I don’t have any property on my name. And my soul is
not exactly people’s favourite.”
Jule smiled, lowering her head a little. “To dinner, then?”
“Yeah. Do you wanna join?”
“No. I actually have to head home. So, I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Um, Jule, wait,” he caught her arm when she started to tread past him. “You’ve
been working your ass off since last week.”
“That’s okay, Sehun. The coronation is just a one-time thing.”
“Uh, no, I mean… you should take the day off tomorrow.”
Jule blinked vacantly for a beat. “Sehun, it’s Monday today. I had a day off
two days ago. And there’s so much left to do.”
“I know. But,” he licked his lips, rubbing the back of his neck. “I think you
should treat yourself to a rest. Okay? Do this for me? You’re probably going to
have a hell lot to deal with next week.”
“I’m really fine, Sehun. Besides, you have lessons tomorrow.”
“I’ll cancel them. I mean, come on. I have been doing well for the past two
weeks. I’ve read all the books. Even the tutors said I’m doing a great job. So,
let’s just take a break tomorrow. We’ll get back to the normal routine on
Wednesday.”
Jule looked a little conflicted for a moment. When the moment had passed, she
let out a sigh and shrugged. “Well… I guess… All right, then.”
“Great! See you Wednesday. Good night.” Sehun chimed and bowed his head once
before he hurried to the kitchen. He found the entire gang gathered by the
counter—all sporting a devious smile each. They stopped midway in their
conversation when Sehun squeezed himself between Xiomara and Jungkook.
“What took you so long?” Jungkook rasped.
“Well, unlike you, I’m a professional work-at-home politician now.” Sehun
mumbled and he heard both Yixing and Donghae snort.
“That’s not a thing, Sehun,” Mark remarked. It had taken Mark less than two
days to warm back up to him and Sehun was most definitely glad that Mark was
not one of those irritating jerks who liked to hold onto grudge until their
last breath or something. “Now, is this your first time crashing a party?”
“I really don’t think he would have been to any parties before.” Donghae
scoffed with a smug smirk and leaned over the counter, winking at Sehun.
Rolling his eyes, Sehun retorted, “My fifth birthday party was the biggest
party thrown in the neighbourhood.”
Everyone burst into a brief chuckle and Sehun glowered to every last one of
them. “Yeah. That’s what I’m talking about.” Donghae laughed. He certainly had
been laughing a lot these days. He was also being less mean to Sehun. Perhaps
all those hours he was spending now cooped up in Ren’s room was paying off in
the best way possible. Sehun rarely saw Ren outside his room, but whenever he
did, Ren would run back to his room or to hide behind Donghae.
“Donghae will keep watch on you.” Mark ordered.
“What?! Why me?!”
“Because in case things go south, you need to be able to get him out of there.
And Sehun, you need to make sure that you always stick around us. Be wary of
anyone who comes to close to you.”
“Great. Now you sound like the father of a sixteen year old girl.” Xiomara
chortled. “He’ll be fine, Mark. He’s been to the school. He knows the people
there and,” she grinned. “Let’s not forget it’s nearly impossible for him to
get caught this year.”
“Still. We need to be careful. Xi, you’ll get Sehun to the south exit sharp at
6 tomorrow.”
Xiomara inclined her head before shooting Sehun a mischievous grin. A storm of
excitement swirled inside him. Sehun could hardly refrain himself from grinning
all day long. Crashing the Spring Ball was sort of a tradition for them and now
Sehun was invited to join them. It felt like a rite of passage and Sehun
couldn’t stop himself from drowning in the exhilaration.
“Okay, dismissed.” Upon Mark’s order, the group demobilized. Sehun was
accompanied by Jungkook and Xiomara to the stairway.
“It’s gonna be so much fun!” Jungkook exclaimed, flashing his perfect set of
teeth.
“Whoa, hold on over there, muchacho. Have you got your suit ready?” Xi asked
and Jungkook rapidly shook his head before he bounced up the stairs.
“What am I wearing?” Sehun inquired, facing his sister at the bottom of the
stairs.
Xiomara’s lips stretched into a full grin as she leaned against the railings.
“I’ve got the perfect outfit for you.”
Sehun arched an eyebrow. “Oh, no. Should I start running for the hills now?
‘Cause your definition of ‘perfect’ sucks the soul out of my legs.” He pointed
to his own hips and Xi grimaced.
“Quit whining. You wanted me to pick the outfit out for you.”
“Uh… I’m pretty sure I never asked you to do that.”
“Okay, fine. You’re happy that I volunteered to dress you up.”
Sehun subtly nodded his head. “Please tell me it’s not pink.”
“It’s not pink. I’m saving that for your wedding.”
“Xi.” He faked a scowl.
“Yixing’s wearing teal. Jungkook and Mark are in black. Donghae’s in maroon. I
got you midnight blue with gold embroidery.”
“Midnight blue?”
“And a matching mask to go with it. I’ll have them over to you later tonight.”
“Mask? What mask?”
“Didn’t you know? It’s masquerade theme this year. Which is why you’re pretty
lucky.” She shrugged.
“So, is it just the Spring Ball that you guys crash? Or are there any other
balls that you slink into?” Sehun paused when he noticed Xiomara’s naughty
look. “Heard as soon as I said it. Let it go.” He raised his hand and stepped
onto the staircase.
“Oh, Sehun. Come on. You and I both know that you know a whole lot about
slinking into balls than I do.”
“Shut up.”
“Whose balls are we talking about?” Amber’s voice boomed into the room when she
entered from the west hallway with an apple in her hand. Sehun could tell Amber
was bored out of her mind. She had been pretty busy with the legal issues of
her amnesty as well. But whenever she was not busy, she busied herself by
bothering Jule, Donghae and Ren. Sehun found it a little amusing, though. Jule,
who hated it when people touched her stuff, was struggling with Amber
disorganizing her files on purpose. Donghae on the other hand, well, he was
just stressed whenever Amber decided to sneak up on Ren and scare the shit out
of him. And yes, Ren was just afraid of Amber jumping him.
She took a bite of the apple and Sehun climbed back down. “Amber.” He greeted
her with a gentle smile.
“Sehun.” she bowed her head with a playful smirk before she turned to Xiomara.
“Hey, beautiful.”
Xiomara turned her face away with her eyebrows furrowed.
“Sorry,” Sehun apologized on Xi’s behalf. “She’s having a mood.”
“Well, she always does. Are you guys doing something?”
Sehun blinked. “That depends on what you mean.”
“I mean all of you have been sneaking around all day.”
“Uh—” he stopped himself when he heard Heva and Chanyeol’s voices before he saw
them sauntering into the hallway. His stomach jumped when he locked gazes with
Chanyeol and a sly smile automatically crept onto his lips. But the smile
faltered as soon as he noticed the sour look on Chanyeol’s face.
“Hey, guys.” Heva muttered tiredly and Xiomara smiled, pursing her lips.
“Hey,” she sighed. “You look… tired. Long day?” Xi took a step closer to Heva
but maintained the distance from there.
“Sort of. A lot of training. I’m gonna hit the bed.” She massaged the back of
her head, beneath her long hair and started for the door. “Xi?”
“Yeah?” she looked up to Heva with stars glimmering in her eyes and Sehun
almost smiled at them if his eyes had not landed on Amber’s dead,
expressionless face as she stared at Xiomara.
“Can I see you at the lodgings for a while?”
Xi stuttered, half-smiling, half-flushed. “Yeah. Sure.” she followed Heva out
of the house.
Amber tossed the apple in her hand and glanced to Sehun, chewing on the apple
with a cocky look before she started to trod on Xiomara’s footsteps and
disappeared out the door. Sehun waited for a moment, gnawing on the inside of
his cheek, wondering if he should go after them.
“Your mother wants to see you.” Chanyeol averted his attention and Sehun turned
to face him. Chanyeol’s kiss caught him off-guard and he almost gasped when
Chanyeol gently pinned him to the stairs’ railings.
“Chanyeol,” Sehun rasped into his mouth before he let out a soft moan when
Chanyeol’s tongue slid past his lips. “Not… here.” He whispered, pressing a
palm to Chanyeol’s chest to push him back. Latching his hands to Sehun’s hips,
Chanyeol sloppily kissed his cheek and the corner of his lips before smashing
their lips together again. “Chanyeol!” Sehun protested under his breath and the
older pulled away from the kiss, groaning in dismay.
“How long do we have to keep this a secret?” he moaned against Sehun’s lips and
kissed his upper lip.
“Chanyeol, you know about Jule.” Sehun murmured, caressing Chanyeol’s cheek
with a heavy heart. He was not being fair to her at all. But he could not
afford to pay attention to that right now.
“Yeah.” He sighed and pulled away altogether. “You’re going to that shitty
ball, aren’t you?”
Sehun let out a loud breath, running his hands up and down Chanyeol’s toned
chest. “Too bad you can’t come,” he whined, smirking as he leaned to peck on
Chanyeol’s lips. “Don’t worry. As soon as I’m back,” he bit his lip, curling
his hand around Chanyeol’s shirt by the sternum. “You can have me all for
yourself, all right?”
Chanyeol smiled at that, although he looked unbelievably tired. “Don’t get
cocky, Sehun. You’ll never know. I might surprise you at the dance.”
“Mmm. Rebel much?”
“Not as much as you,” he cupped Sehun’s chin and forced their lips together.
“Gwenna asked for you.”
“Oh, right. Okay,” Sehun withdrew himself from Chanyeol with a spinning head
and turned towards the hallway that led to his mother’s room. “See you later,
stranger.”
Her room had always been enveloped by a sort of sadness that Sehun could never
button down. He silently closed the door behind him. “Sehun.” Gwenna rose from
the chaise lounge, rubbing her forehead. Her pale face stood out in contrast to
her red long gown. She took a stumbling step forward and Sehun hurried to her
side.
“Are you… okay?” he rasped, but Gwenna straightened up before his hands could
even touch her arms.
“I’m fine. Fine.” She muttered and sank back into chaise lounge.
“You don’t look fine. Are you still sick?”
“A little headache is all,” she forced a brief smile. “Sehun, I called you in
here to… well, I don’t want to beat around the bush. It seems that you and
Chanyeol are… closer than you should be.”
Sehun snapped his lips shut as he clenched his jaw and scowled. “Did he tell
you that?”
“No, he didn’t.”
“So, you’re just barging into our heads, huh? Well, that’s pretty screwed up.”
“Sehun—”
“I get it. He’s a guard. I’m not supposed to be snogging a guard.”
“The first time we met, you weren’t this impulsive.”
“Oh. Let’s just say the people here changed me.” he scoffed angrily.
His mother drew in a shaky breath and looked to Sehun with a steadiness in her
eyes. “You promised yourself to Philip’s daughter.”
“I’m not getting married to her right this instant.”
“You cannot be with Chanyeol. That’s it. Do not argue with me any further.”
Sehun let out a dry, humourless laugh and began to pace the room. “You can’t
dictate how I want to live my love life, okay?”
“Love life? You think you love him?” she asked calmly. “Sehun, you and I both
know that what you feel for him is sympathy and what you need from him is a
distraction.”
Sehun’s jaw dropped a little. “That’s a little too brazen even for you.”
Gwenna did not reply to that as she glanced out the glass wall and stared into
the dark orchard.
“You know what? Why don’t you just stay out of my life like you have for the
past seventeen years of my life?” he spat and with that, he stormed out of the
room.
===============================================================================
 
 
(A/N) Guys, check out my new short Sekai boyfriends/thriller fic > THE_GHOUL
WITHIN < And y'all ready for the Spring Ball?????? Back to FLAC in the next
chapter!
***** Spring Ball Part 1 *****
The inky, knife-edge night sky boasted its brilliant assemblage of
scintillating clusters of stars. The faint beats of the exhilarating distanced
music that swirled in the air pounded in his ears, intoxicating the ambience.
As soon as the world had stopped spinning around him, Sehun cleared his throat,
wetted it with his saliva and straightened his coat. His breath was still
stuck. He could never get used to Donghae’s teleporting him. Yanking his pants
up by the belt loops, he adjusted his periwinkle-coloured shirt and oxford blue
necktie before fastening the buttons of his coat. When he brought his head up
to look to the trees that surrounded him, he was met with four sets of idle and
judgmental eyes.
“If you’re done pampering yourself, shall we?” Donghae snorted and started
towards the rosebush hedge. “We don’t have all night.”
“Why are you in a rush? Do you need to get back before midnight, Donghaerella?”
asked Mark, resonating an annoyed tone. Sehun once again found himself staring
at Mark. It had been a night full of wonders and the night had only begun. He
had not expected Mark to look this good and incredibly sharp in a black suit.
His hair was gelled and swept back, and he had even trimmed his beard.
“He needs to get back to his precious Ren.” Yixing sniggered to which Donghae
responded with a belligerent scowl. Yixing, not surprisingly, rocked in his
striking teal suit. Compared to Donghae, Mark and Jungkook, Yixing simply
looked warm and exciting. Donghae looked to like one of those brooding,
arrogant princes that you would never want to get close to. Sehun, needless to
say, stuck out like a sore thumb—significantly overdressed. At least he felt
overdressed. Xiomara definitely would have disagreed. After all, the midnight
blue suit with elaborate gold embroideries and the menacing wild hairstyle were
all her choice. The outfit didn’t look bad one bit. But maybe if only Sehun was
not so scrawny, he would have looked good. Like Donghae and Mark.
When he looked to Jungkook, he handed him his gold-blue mask with a playful
smile playing on his lips.
“When will Xi be joining us?” Sehun asked, treading behind the others. The
music was now blaring and he could now see the towers past the trees that
surrounded the castle of FLAC. “She could have just come with us.”
“Don’t worry. She’s a big girl. She knows her way around here. You know how
women are. Men can grow old waiting for them to be ready.” Mark scoffed.
“And it’s not like we don’t like the end product of it.” Yixing muttered with a
mischievous smirk etched on his face as he clapped a hand to Mark’s back.
“Well, can’t argue with you on that. Beautiful things—women. God’s finest
creation,” Mark’s lips stretched into a handsome smile and Sehun found himself
automatically grinning at the man. “Also happens to be God’s most destructive
creation.”
“Why would you say that?” Sehun inquired as they came to a halt before the
hedge. A cacophony of giggles and whispers blended with the harmonious music
cawed on the other side of the hedge.
“Women are men’s biggest weakness, Sehun,” he stated with a nonchalant shrug.
“Without them, we’ll be indestructible. And I’m not particularly talking about
women we are attracted to. But just basically women, mothers, sisters, even
friends.”
“Well, it’s not like they’re all fragile. There are powerful, strong women.”
Jungkook countered.
“It’s not like we want to overpower them because they’re meek. But it’s because
us men have a natural tendency to protect them. And thus, they are our
weakness,” Mark turned to face the hedge. “And we want to be their strength.”
“Not me. I just wanna take the ladies to the bed.” Yixing chimed and Donghae
shushed him.
“Okay. There’s nobody around. Ready?” Donghae asked, holding a hand out.
“Wait, you’re teleporting us again?” Sehun slightly gasped. “Why didn’t you
just—”
“Because I don’t know who will be around and who won’t. We can’t make a scene
when I teleport us into the place and you might have thrown up if the distance
of the teleportation is too long. That is why we stopped there and I can bring
us to the other side causing minimal damage. Capiche?”
Sehun reluctantly nodded. “But… can’t we just climb over the hedge?”
Rolling his eyes, Donghae grabbed Sehun’s arm and the rest held onto Donghae’s
shoulders. With a flash of black and darkness, Sehun found himself on the end
of the hedge with a subtle buzz at the back of his head. “It’s the one night
almost all of the entrances are opened. But of course, there’re guards.”
Donghae muttered, pulling his mask on as did the others. Sehun anxiously
glanced around them only to spot a group of students, dressed in exhaustive
gowns and suits in the furthest corridor. The hall was at least several meters
away and it seemed that the ball had already begun. Sehun pulled his own mask
on.
“Usually it’s a little bit more difficult than this. We only go in when the
party starts. But some years their themes, like this one, work out well for
us.” Yixing said.
“But still, let’s keep a low profile and try to not attract attention to
ourselves.” Mark replied. Sehun did not entirely understand why crashing the
Spring Ball was so important to them. But he had a theory. This was the one
night when they were allowed to be kids, when they can be amidst people who
would not really care about who they were until they knew who they were. Here,
they can be themselves. Was that not what FLAC was all about? A place for the
Flairers to be themselves where they did not have to hide? He was turning 17
next week and with the coronation, there will be a huge amount of burden placed
on his shoulders. He needed this night to have fun.
Heaving a sigh, he followed the others towards the hall. They remained in the
shades and shadows in the most isolated corridor with the least brightness.
Sehun’s heart began to race in his chest as the corners of his quirked into a
nervous grin. This was thrilling to say the least. Over the past few weeks,
Sehun had acquired a taste for rebellions and insubordination. It was as if
this wildness in him had just been unleashed after having been oppressed within
him for so long. He was not just rebellious. He was reckless. And he liked it.
“Wait,” Mark stopped them when they came closer to the hall. Sehun peered at
the crowd that swarmed the entrance of the hall. He could not recognize any one
of them, but they looked like seniors. “From here onwards, we split up. But
make sure you have your eyes on each other from time to time. And Jungkook, no
alcohol.”
“Oh, come on!” Jungkook protested. “No one’s gonna know, Mark. Not even
champagne?!”
“Not even truffles.”
Mark took the lead. Yixing and Donghae soon disappeared into the crowd before
Jungkook faced Sehun. “Why do you look worried?” he asked Sehun.
“How do you know I look worried behind this mask?” Sehun arched his brows.
“You’re pouting.”
“Oh. I’m not worried,” his heart skipped a beat as he glanced ahead to the
hall. The entire corridor and the corridors nearby were adorned with countless
amount of sundry fresh roses. A mix of delicious fragrances tickled Sehun’s
nose. “Just a little… nervous.” He whispered.
Jungkook nodded and smiled. “This place was your dream once, right?”
“Yeah.” He sighed. A part of him still believed that his dream was still here.
With a pat on Sehun’s chest, Jungkook leapt and hopped his way to the hall.
Sehun adjusted his mask and sucked in a deep breath before starting towards the
hall. He wove past some students, trying his level best to not to look up at
them or scowl. No one seemed to care about his presence anyway. He wondered if
Xiomara was ever going to show up. He had not seen her since morning when she
came over to drop his suit off with a sombre face.
As he edged closer to the hall, he came to a stop to scan the pathway paved by
a carpet of pink roses, leading all the way to the giant doors of the hall.
Everywhere he turned, students were either laughing or making out. This was
hardly a sophisticated masquerade ball. The striking contrast between the
informal party Sehun had back at the mansion and the formal ball in FLAC was
ironic. He realized he missed this. He missed every part of this free and
careless ambience. No one expected much from him here. Well, maybe except Kai.
Sehun clenched his fists and shook the thought of Kai away. He was bound to
bump into him tonight and when he did, Sehun will not agitate and he will not
be discombobulated. He had moved on. He was with Chanyeol now. Kai had no place
in his heart anymore. Sehun’s jaw literally dropped when he walked into the
crowded hall. Elaborately bejewelled crystal chandeliers hung on the ceiling of
the grandiose hall caught his attention foremost. He had been in this hall many
a time, but none of those times had bewitched him like this. Long tables of
food and drinks were lined up on either sides of the hall. Many were
dancing—swirling and gliding in the middle of the hall. Myriad white and red
flowers embellished the hall from corner to corner. Sehun spotted Baekhyun in
the crowd near the tables and quickly turned around when Baekhyun’s gaze turned
his way.
Sehun tried to locate Jungkook, Mark, Yixing and Donghae, but he was
immediately distracted by the intruding hand on the small of his back. “Fancy
seeing you here,” Completely frozen and paralyzed, Sehun tried to stay calm
with Kris’ breath grazing the back of his neck. When Kris withdrew his hand,
Sehun slowly turned and faced him. Kris had a mask on only one side of his
face, beautifully covering half of it. His lips were shaped into a devilishly
handsome smile and Sehun realized how awestriking Kris was. He had always been
so. “My brother told me you and the others would be here tonight. But I was not
counting on actually seeing you here.”
“Nice to see you again, Kris,” Sehun could not bring himself to even fake a
smile. “Well, the last time, you were trying to hurt me and my friend.”
“Hurt… you?” Kris laughed. “I was hardly touching her, please. Even after all
the things that I’ve shared with you, you couldn’t trust me, can you?”
“Given your choice of lying to me and deceiving me, how do you expect me to
trust you, Kris?” Sehun scowled. “I wanted to be your friend. I wanted you to
be my friend. But you just lied and lied to me, again and again, just so that
when the time comes, I will take your side.”
“At least I didn’t kidnap you and put you under house arrest.”
Sehun blinked at how blatant Kris was. “It’s… not a house arrest.”
“Yeah, whatever. Whether you wanna believe me or not, I truly care for you,
okay? Those people you hang out with now don’t even like you. They only bear
with you because eventually you’re gonna be more powerful than them and your
mommy’s influential.”
Sehun rolled his eyes and turned his back to Kris. That was when Kris grabbed
hold of his hand and spun him around before yanking him close. “What the fuck
are you doing?!” he hissed under his breath as Kris began to sway him towards
the dance floor.
“Ah, you even swear now? Did I tell you how good you look? The whole hair and
deal.” Kris smirked, or at least it looked like he was smirking with half of
his lips covered by the mask. Sehun struggled for a moment when Kris curled his
arm around his waist, but gave in when he realized he didn’t want to attract
anyone’s attention. He reluctantly draped his arms over Kris’ shoulders.
“Seriously, what’re you doing?” he snarled.
“Can’t you see? We’re dancing.”
“I don’t want to.”
“Oh, come on, Sehun. You can’t be mad at me for something that I did that was
totally justifiable.”
“I actually felt bad for you, jerk. I thought you were genuine about everything
that you said.”
“I was genuine about everything that I said. I just left out some very
important details, but again in my defence, you would have freaked out if I had
told you everything.”
Sehun fell silent for a moment as they fell in sync with the music. He looked
around him, letting Kris lead him in the dance. His moves were sloppy and lazy
compared to Kris’ sharp, graceful steps. Sehun was not sure what he was looking
for. He should be keeping a low profile. Not dance with the hottest guy in
school in the centre of the hall. Then all out of the sudden, Kris came to halt
and gaped over Sehun’s shoulder with his eyes bulging out. Pulling his arms off
Kris’ shoulders, Sehun glanced back before facing the flushed Kris again. “What
is it?” he decided to ask.
Shaking his head, Kris finally met Sehun’s eyes. “Excuse me.” He gently pushed
Sehun aside before he hurried past him and out of the hall. Vacantly blinking
at how fast Kris had excused himself, Sehun’s eyebrows furrowed into a scowl.
His eyes then fell on Mark who was dancing with a tall woman only a few feet
away from him. Only after a moment did Sehun recognize that woman to be
Professor Hani.
Xiomara was still absent.
A little worried and a little annoyed, Sehun stepped out before he could bump
into his former classmates. The music and the discordant chatters suddenly
began to irritate him and his heart started to hammer against his chest. He
unbuttoned his coat and peeled it off before rolling the sleeves of his shirt
up to his elbows as he strutted away from the hall. The darkness of the night
engulfed him again when he entered the corridor leading to Dillan’s office. He
had not seen Dillan in the hall. Since that he was already here, maybe he could
just pay a quick visit to his old room.
And on his way to the tower, he pulled the mask off and halted at the sight of
the telephone booth, biting his lower lip, wondering if he should call his
parents. Did they even want to hear from him anymore? Did they miss him? He let
out a heavy breath and walked towards it. Just when he was about to reach it,
he found a figure sitting at the bottom of the stairs leading the tower of his
dormitory. His heart instantaneously sank into his stomach as his breath
caught. Kai lazily brought his head up with bloodshot eyes. His hair was
possibly soaked with sweat or water—Sehun didn’t know. But it was messy beyond
belief, sticking everywhere, but mostly curtaining half of Kai’s eyes. His
black shirt was unbuttoned almost to his midriff, revealing Kai’s glistening
bronze chest. His jaw was lined with a fine stubble.
“You… look like shit.” Sehun remarked, forsaking the telephone booth as he
approached Kai. Kai’s eyes fell on the black bands around Sehun’s wrists.
“Restrainers.” Sehun informed him voluntarily and Kai subtly nodded his head
once before looking away. Licking his lips, Sehun endlessly wondered what the
hell Kai was doing here looking like he hadn’t showered in days when the Spring
Ball was spiralling with exhilaration out there. He was refraining himself from
asking Kai why he was sitting here, looking like this. But he decided against
it when he convinced himself he shouldn’t care.
But he did. He cared for Kai an awful lot.
“I thought you’d be at the ball,” Sehun murmured before the stench finally
reached his nose. Kai was reeking of alcohol. Sehun pinched the bridge of his
nose and bit his tongue. “I… should get back. See you at my coronation, Kai.”
“No, wait.” Kai’s ridiculously rough voice sent shivers down Sehun’s spine as
Kai caught his wrist, preventing him from walking away. “I tried, Sehun.”
Sehun did not want to hear anything further. He pulled his hand free and
retreated a couple of steps. “I need get back to the hall.”
Kai pulled himself up and almost crashed to the ground if Sehun had not caught
him. Then pinning his entire weight onto Sehun, Kai slowly collapsed, breathing
heavily. “Kai.” Sehun groaned, trying to hold Kai up. “Jesus Christ, you
impossible bastard.” Sehun hissed and threw Kai’s arm over his shoulders. He
had two options now. He could just throw Kai to the ground and go back to the
party he had been so excited about for weeks now. Or he could do Kai one last
favour by getting him into his bed and then go back to the party. Groaning, he
began to drag Kai up the stairs.
***** Spring Ball Part 1 1/2 *****
“Can you at least try to walk straight?!” Sehun growled at Kai who was barely
clinging onto his neck.
“I hate my life, Sehun.” Kai whined when they reached the door. Sehun groaned,
looking up at the locked door and wondered if this was the room he had been to
before.
“Where’s your key?” he slumped Kai against the wall near the door and Kai
almost collapsed to the ground. Embracing him again, Sehun exhaled a sigh of
exasperation and pinned Kai to the wall with every ounce of strength that he
had. “Why the hell are you this drunk?!”
A lazy smirk took form on Kai’s red and swollen lips. “Why the hell do you keep
asking questions when you already know the answers?”
Sehun clenched his jaw. This was not the night he had planned in mind. Sliding
his hand into Kai’s front pockets, he tried to fish out the keys, but froze
when Kai draped his arms over Sehun’s shoulders. “Did you miss me?”
“Cut your nonsense out.” Sehun shoved Kai’s arms off his shoulders and flipped
Kai around, smashing his front to the wall to check the back pockets of his
jeans.
“Ugh, goodness, Sehun. I always thought I’d be the one to mount you.” he
snorted in amusement.
Taken aback by Kai’s embarrassing remark, Sehun immediately pulled his hands
away from the pockets and drew back. Blood filled Sehun’s cheeks when Kai
turned around to face him. “Oh, so this is what it’s all about? You’re sulking
because I asked you to stop fucking with me?”
Kai licked his lips. “No,” his eyes fell droopy as he took a step forward and
casually latched his hands to Sehun’s hips. “It’s just that… You’re just one of
the many things I failed at.”
“Sehun.”
His entire vision blackened at the sudden squawk of his name. There was a sound
breathing that wasn’t his own. His eyes were clenched tight now, ready to be
fluttered open. Something warm glided over his waist, up the side of his torso,
under the fabric of his shirt. The darkness remained for a while before it
began to fade. Suddenly every thought was in high definition again. “Sehun.”
The gentle whisper that tickled his ear roused him, tingling every last one of
his senses. Sehun opened his eyes. He greeted the painful brightness with a
groan and then welcomed the soothing caress on the side of his body, kneading
the skin with gentleness, with a subtle moan. A set of digits snaked across his
torso from behind and lightly skimmed Sehun’s midriff. Sehun fixed his eyes on
the patches of sunlight that bleached the carpet on the floor and slowly, it
hit him.
Blinking his blurry eyes, he stirred and slowly lifted his head to turn it
around. His heart nearly stopped when he realized he was in his room, still in
bed with his boyfriend. Chanyeol sleepily smiled at him before he leaned down
to brush his lips on Sehun’s cheekbone. “Morning, sleepyhead.”
Sehun shot upright and stared at Chanyeol, wide-eyed and with his lips slightly
parted. “What the…” he trailed off, breathless. His throat was sore and dry
like a sandpaper.
“What’s wrong?” Chanyeol sat up with him and curled an arm around Sehun’s
shoulders, frowning a little.
His breath caught. What did just happen? Sehun blinked rapidly and looked
around him in a frenzy. “I swear to god that was…” he panted and looked up at
Chanyeol again. “Was not… a dream.”
“What was not a dream?” he inquired. Sehun aimlessly stared at him for a moment
with his eyebrows furrowed into a scowl. It doesn’t make any sense. It felt so
real.His perplexed mind wailed for a moment in utter chaos. “Sehun, don’t make
me read your mind.” he cupped a side of Sehun’s jaw and forced him to meet his
eyes when Sehun tried to avert his gaze again.
“No, Chanyeol,” Sehun, a little out of breath, jumped off the bed after pushing
the duvet aside. “This is unbelievable.” he exhaled in disbelief, pacing the
floor at the foot of the bed, clad in nothing but a t-shirt and his boxers. He
knew Chanyeol was wearing nothing more either under the covers.
“What is unbelievable, Sehun?” he demanded, sounding rather impatient.
Sehun came to a halt and scrubbed his face. “Was I dreaming?!”
“Dreaming about what?”
“Everything. No, it can’t be a dream,” he began to pace back and forth again,
rubbing his jaw. “That’s impossible! I know it wasn’t a dream!”
“Sehun, what the hell are you talking about?”
“Did something weird happen?”
“The only weird thing that’s happening right now is you.” Chanyeol scoffed and
fell back on the bed again, tucking his hand under his head.
“No, I’m not kidding! Chanyeol, did I come back from the Spring Ball last
night?”
“What are you talking about, Sehun?” Chanyeol looked genuinely confused now.
“I went to FLAC’s ball last night, didn’t I?”
“Uh… who was I making out with last night if you were at the ball?” he cocked a
brow, propping his head in one of his hands as he faced Sehun.
“What?”
Chanyeol arched his eyebrow higher. “Are you doing this for real?”
“Oh, my god, Chanyeol. I’m not pulling your leg!” he dropped to flump on the
edge of the bed and planted his head in his hands. It didn’t make sense. This
was precisely how he had woken up on the day he got ready for the Spring Ball.
With Chanyeol in his bed and he was awakened by the same gentle whispers.
“Hey,” Chanyeol muttered, rubbing Sehun’s back. “Maybe you had a dream. Calm
down.”
“Did I go to the Spring Ball or not?”
“No, Sehun. It’s tonight.”
Sehun raised his head from his hands and swallowed. “It can’t be a dream. It
felt so… real.”
“What?”
Then in a frantic turn, he faced Chanyeol. “Xi will knock on the door in a
minute. No, she will enter without knocking. And she will say something about
killing me if I don’t wear the necktie.”
“Huh?”
As if on cue, the door sprung open and Sehun’s head shot up. Xiomara waltzed in
with a covered suit, looking incredibly cheery. “Morning, lovebirds. I have
news. A really great one.”
“Xi.” Chanyeol rasped, yanking the duvet closer to his chest as Xiomara
proceeded to the chaise lounge to settle the suit.
Sehun recalled everything vividly. She would be facing them while fixing her
hair now. Xiomara turned around and undid her hair before tying it again. Sehun
jolted up to his feet. “This is your suit for tonight. I will kill you if you
don’t wear the tie,” Xiomara warned him. “Oh, and Jule asked me give you this.”
She handed Sehun an envelope which he ignored.
“Xi, this might sound crazy, but I just had a dream. Of everything that’s gonna
happen tonight. Things that’re gonna happen at the ball!” Sehun blurted out and
silence followed before Xiomara scoffed.
“Yeah, I’ve been having that dream for a while now, too.”
“No, no. Listen, it’s not like that. I had a lucid dream. Like it was actually
happening. I even remember all of this! You were going to tell me Mrs Gump made
berry soufflés, aren’t you?”
Xiomara blinked. “Well, now that you already know that, I won’t tell you.”
“God,” Sehun groaned, rubbing his forehead. “I’m not lying. You… weren’t this
cheery in my dream. And you’re not planning to come along with us, are you?
Donghae, Mark, Yixing, Jungkook. You won’t be coming along with us to the ball.
I asked about you when we were about to cross the rosebush.”
“Okay, now you’re creeping me out.” She chuckled and shoved past Sehun. “Did
you fuck him that hard that he’s lost his mind now?”
Chanyeol deliberately lied back down and pulled the duvet over his face to
ignore Xiomara. “Xi, this is creeping me out, too. I swear, I’m not making this
up.” Sehun rasped and Xiomara passed him a sceptical look.
“Sehun, maybe it’s like Déjà Vu or something. And we won’t be going with
Donghae this year. In fact, as part of concord, we are officially invited to
the ball.”
“What?”
Xiomara held the envelope out again and Sehun snatched it before opening it up.
“She struck another deal for the consensus last night and the invitation was
delivered just in the morning. Which means, we’ll get to walk in through the
front entrance this year. It takes all the fun out of it, but at least we’ll be
treated like royals.” She sniggered.
“This… doesn’t make sense. It’s all very abrupt… and very convenient.” Sehun
scowled, reading through the invitation in scrutiny.
“Dillan wants us there. And Gwenna’s agreed to send all the protection you’d
need.”
“Xi, I don’t have a good feeling about this.” He frowned, darting his eyes to
Chanyeol who was staring at them wordlessly.
“Why? Because of your creepy dream?”
“Nothing actually went wrong in my creepy dream, but this,” he waved the
invitation. “Are you not even going to question why all out of the sudden
Dillan will be formally allowing you lot into FLAC? What if it’s a trap?”
“Okay, big bro, you’re thinking too much into this.” She patted Sehun’s chest
and spun around.
It boggled his mind. He was not going to believe in superstitions, but his
dream had to mean something. Or maybe not. Maybe it was just a dream. A really
lucid and real dream. It felt like his dream was the correct course. This
invitation changed everything. Maybe he was overthinking it. He sighed and
tossed Chanyeol the invitation.
Xiomara stopped at the door and glanced to Sehun again with a bewildered
expression. “How did you know we cross the rosebush?”
Sehun kept his eyes static on his sister without a response. Xiomara blinked
back at him in some sort of astonishment. “I told you.” he muttered.
“Well, maybe you heard it somewhere.” Xi murmured expressionlessly and stormed
out of the room, slamming the door shut behind her. Sehun gnawed on his lip and
wiped his face.
“Never thought this would happen.” Chanyeol handed the invitation card back to
Sehun.
“Me neither. Can you believe it? They chose to invite us at the last minute?”
“Yeah, so?”
Sehun climbed back into the bed and let Chanyeol cover his body with his long
arms. “Like I said… It’s very convenient.”
“What was this dream about anyway?” Chanyeol moaned in the crook of Sehun’s
neck before kissing it.
Exhaling a heavy breath, Sehun shook his head. “Let’s not talk about it. You
should go.”
“Right now?” he nuzzled his nose in the side of Sehun’s neck, slipping his hand
under Sehun’s t-shirt.
“Yes, now. I don’t want you to get into trouble. My mother is… not a fan of us
being together. I’ll see you tonight when I’m back.”
“Promise me you won’t let her get into your head, Sehun.”
“I promise.”
===============================================================================
“Bow chicka wow wow!” Amber’s unconventional comment boomed in the hallway as
soon as Sehun had stepped out of his room. Startled and a little humiliated, he
rolled his eyes at Amber who was fully dressed in a women tuxedo. Her hair was
perfectly gelled and combed, and she generally looked like the freshest apple
in the fruit basket.
“Stop.” Sehun grumbled when Amber began to make obscene expressions. “Wait… Are
you coming along?”
“Well, I am your Champion-in-training. It is my obligation to tail you
everywhere from now on, Mr Sehun.”
“I appreciate that, Amber. But please, not everywhere.”He started towards the
staircase with Amber by his side. “Speaking of training, how’s it going with
the other Minders?”
“I don’t know why you keep them. I could take on all of them. All at once.”
Sehun smirked at that. “Is it self-confidence or overconfidence, Miss Amber?”
“Oh, it’s definitely self-confidence. Me being overconfident is aiming to
become the next president.”
Chortling a little, Sehun stopped at the top of the stairs to face Amber. “Did…
something happen last night?”
“You mean with your sister? Nothing really. Looks like I’ve made another enemy
here. Heva must me hate to my guts now.”
“Try and make friends too once in a while.” He clapped his hand on Amber’s arm
and ushered her to proceed down the stairs.
“Sehun,” Amber stopped him at the bottom and flashed the most genuine smile
Sehun had seen in a while. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For this. For this better life. I know eventually it will fall apart and I
will have to face shit, but at least I’m… shit-free for the time being.”
Sehun mirrored her smile and clasped his hand gently on her shoulder. “When
that time comes, Amber, I promise we’ll face that shit together. Speaking of
making friends, how about we both make an effort towards that first, huh?”
Amber’s smile stretched into a toothy one and she opened her mouth to reply,
but was instantaneously distracted by the flash of white that appeared on their
peripheral vision. Sehun glanced up the stairs and his jaw dropped to the floor
along with Amber’s. Xiomara bit her pink lip as she descended the stairs in the
elaborate white gown with gold embroidery, resembling the gold embroidery on
Sehun’s coat, only way more detailed. “We can be friends if you’ll let me date
your sister.” Amber whispered in the lowest voice possible and Sehun faked a
scowl at her.
“You look handsome.” Xiomara remarked, grinning at Sehun as she reached the
bottom of the staircase.
“Thanks. It’s Armani.” Amber replied and received a scornful glare from
Xiomara.
“Damn, you look so beautiful, Xi.” Sehun smiled, crooking his arm for his
sister to curl hers around it.
“Yeah. You’re a queen. And you’re a princess, Xixi.” Amber shrugged. “So, can
we get going? The others are waiting at the foyer.”
As she walked away, Xiomara turned to Sehun with her mouth agape. “Did she call
me Xixi?” she asked in the most disdainful tone.
Sehun cocked his eyebrows. “She just called me a queen. I don’t think Xixi’s
any worse compared to that. Come on.”
“Do you have your mask?”
“Yeah.”
***** Bête Noire *****
His confusion was charging horses pulling in opposite directions. Everything
that was happening around him was an abstract confusion that left his mind
rocking in foreign ways. He was beginning to believe that it could have been
just an unusual lucid and graphic dream. But it was impossible that he could
have dreamed about how Mark, Jungkook, Yixing and Donghae were going to look.
They were dressed like an exact copy from Sehun’s dream. From top to toe. How
could an episode of Déjà Vu extend to this degree? Sehun insufferably stared at
Jungkook who shared the backseat with him. He even had the exact brooche which
carried the emblem of the Recherchés.
Jungkook pinned Sehun with a sidelong glance and shifted uneasily in his seat.
“Do I have something on my face, Sehun?”
Sehun averted his gaze at once and frantically shook his head. “God, no.” he
rubbed his forehead and turned his head all the way back to look at the cars
that followed. His mother sure liked to show off her prosperity. Sehun could
not even count the amount of Minders who accompanied him tonight. “Do we
seriously need this many Minders?”
“My exact question when you are six of the most powerful Flairers in this
world.” Amber snorted, shifting the gear as she pulled the car into FLAC’s
compound. Sehun and Jungkook simultaneously gaped at the extravagance the
castle was wrapped in. “I take it only rich kids go here.”
“I wasn’t rich per se.” Sehun commented, glancing out the window on his side.
Bright, decorative ornaments embellished every corner and students in gowns and
elaborate suits waited in crowds, gawking at the cars that entered the
compound. Sehun felt hot at the back of his neck. He must seem like one of
those paupers turned prince. It was embarrassing. If he had known things would
take such drastic turn in plans, he never would have agreed to come to this
ball. But there were political reasons as well. This can help him form a
consensus with Dillan as well.
“Please. Look at your skin. It’s like you only bathed in goat’s milk or
something. And you naturally smell like honey.”
“Amber, I’d appreciate if you’d stop assessing the quality of my skin or
sniffing me.”
Jungkook looked guilty for a moment and looked away, gulping. Sehun cringed and
rolled his eyes.
“Is it too late to turn back?” he let out, clenching and releasing his fists.
“Yes. The cars are already parked behind us,” Amber yanked the handbrake. “I
can’t turn back.”
Sehun sucked in a deep breath and smiled at Jungkook. “How do you guys handle
the crowd?”
“We don’t. We usually just blend in. It’s my first time coming to FLAC
legally.” Jungkook admitted.
“Okay.” he exhaled heavily and waited for the Minder to open the door before he
stepped out. Maybe he was expecting flashes of cameras and cheers, but all that
he received were silence stares. He spotted Baekhyun in the crowd. He
recognized the green suit Baekhyun sported.
“This is odd.” Xiomara whispered when she joined his side. Mark, Donghae and
Yixing joined them right after. “Why are they staring?”
“Only because you’re so beautiful.” Amber whispered back from behind and
Xiomara sneered at her. The Minders surrounded them and that was when Sehun’s
eyes landed on Kris who emerged from the crowd. He recognized the mask that
concealed only half of Kris’ face almost immediately. A short smirk formed on
Sehun’s lips and Kris mirrored his smirk. Sehun was almost certain now that it
had not been just a dream. He should find a drunk and messed up Kai somewhere
soon.
“Welcome! Welcome to the Flairers’ Academia.” Dillan’s voice boomed before she
appeared in a long-sleeved black gown that glimmered like the sky that was
dusted with stars. She was accompanied by a couple of other teachers. She wore
a devilishly handsome smile and Sehun now understood which parent Kai could
have inherited the ability to knock someone for six with just a smile from. “It
is an absolute pleasure to have you lot here.”
“The pleasure is all ours, Dillan.” Mark replied with a brief smile.
“I suppose it isn’t your first time here.” She grinned wider, but not an inch
of her smile was sincere.
“Well, you’d know that, won’t you?” Donghae added. Dillan nodded her head,
slightly smirking now before she turned to face Sehun.
“Tonight, you will join the members of FLAC once again in the honour of your
mother, Sehun. From the moment I met you, I knew you held great ambitions. And
this new ambition of yours is rather endearing, I must admit. A rather
difficult one to be achieved.” Her tone was that of a threatening one. It
almost sounded like she was mocking or even warning Sehun.
Sehun’s eyes flitted to Kris for a short moment before he fixed them back on
Dillan. He smiled. “Oh, don’t worry, Headmistress. I have a whole life ahead of
me to see it achieved.”
Dillan gave a curt bow of her head with an impressed smile before she extended
an arm. “Please. This way.”
The students cleared the way as the Minders shielded both sides of the Six as
they followed Dillan and the other faculty members to the hall. “Will you stop
staring at me?” Xiomara suddenly hissed at Amber who was escorting her and
Sehun.
“Oh, hundreds of people are staring at you right now and only me staring at you
bothers you?” Amber retorted.
“Guys.” Sehun cut them off.
“You’re staring at my rack.” Xiomara shot back under her breath and hooked her
arm around Sehun’s.
Amber frantically glanced around her before she smirked at Xiomara. “I only
look at what’s shown to me, sweetheart.”
Sehun shook his head, rolling his eyes before he turned his attention to
Donghae who took his side. “If things go south—” he started.
“They won’t.” Sehun interrupted and Donghae glared at him.
“If they did and if I can’t get to you, I want you to get to me first so that I
can get you out of here.” Donghae kept his voice as low as possible.
“I’m not your priority, Donghae.” Sehun protested.
“As much as I hate it, you are. Don’t argue.” He fell back before Sehun could
have another say. Sighing, Sehun leaned in to whisper to Xiomara.
“You’re beautiful and Amber could be the one who’s appreciating that the most.
Give her some credit, will you?”
Xiomara pulled back with a scornful look and scowled at Amber instead. “She’s a
Snatcher. Once a Snatcher, always a Snatcher.” She pulled her arm from Sehun’s
when they reached the hall.
“Well, ouch.” Amber shrugged and started ahead of them.
“Yeah, well. You of all people should know how it feels like to be an
outsider.” Sehun muttered, ushering his sister into the hall with his hand
gently pressed to the small of her back. He will suffer Xiomara’s wrath for
that later.
His heart sank to his stomach when he entered the hall, discerning every bit of
the details of the hall’s decoration. It was as he had expected. It could not
have been a dream. It wasn’t a dream. Maybe a part of him was hoping that it
had been a dream.
Xiomara raised her mask to her face. “This is your party. Enjoy it as you
will.” Dillan said, guiding them to their table. The music of the trombone and
cello filled the crowded hall as Sehun took his seat at the table. The Minders
took their stands near the table.
“Is this necessary?” Sehun asked Mark, pointing at the Minders.
“I know right.” Yixing answered instead. “This is so not fun.” He shook his
head disappointedly.
“I can’t believe Jule got us freaking invitations.” Donghae added.
“Perks of having influence in the ministry.” Mark said, shrugging. Sehun looked
to Xiomara who grinning sheepishly at the students who were dancing. At least
she humouring herself. When Sehun pulled his gaze away from Xiomara and raised
his head, his eyes immediately fell on Kai who was already excusing himself
from a couple of other teachers. Sehun’s jaw almost fell to the ground when he
apprehended Kai’s fresh smile and killer suit. His black coat had so much
details in silver, his slightly long hair was gelled and styled, standing in
waves. The black-silver watch on his wrist complimented to his entire look. He
looked like a fucking prince. But that was not what paralysed Sehun. So far,
every element of his so-called dream was conforming to reality. Kai was the
only deviation thus far. And he was the biggest deviation.
“Excuse me.” Sehun shot up from his seat when he noticed Kai approaching their
table. He walked up to Kai and glared at Kai’s welcoming smile.
“You made it.” Kai held a hand out and Sehun took it with extreme scrutiny.
Kai’s palm was warm against his own and Sehun found himself reminiscing the
brief moments of ecstasy he had shared with Kai. No, you can’t do this to
yourself, Sehun. You don’t want him. You’re better off without him.“You look…
amazing.”
“Yeah, I could say the same about you.” Sehun said blatantly and without any
excitement although his heart was hammering against his chest. “Where’s Dee?”
he pulled his hand back.
“She’s… home.” Kai licked his lips and Sehun failed the battle with himself
when he tried to not to look at Kai’s lips. “Look at you,” he smirked. “Making
even more progress. Already stepping back into FLAC with invitation.
Impressive, Sehun.”
“I think people are giving me too much credit.” He let out a heavy breath,
aimlessly glancing around him before he met Kai’s dark eyes again. “This is all
Jule. In fact, it’s always Jule. She’s the one who’s making all of this
possible.”
“I guess that is why you two will make a great couple. Powerful, to say the
least.” Now Kai’s smile was just taunting Sehun. “Looking forward to the
announcement of your engagement at your coronation next week.”
Sehun’s stomach churned. He was the biggest asshole for doing this to Jule. He
knew that. Wiping the concern expression off his face, he confronted Kai with a
silent glower. “Are you making fun of me?” he asked in a low voice.
“Jesus, no. Sehun, why would you think that?” he snorted. “Look. It’s nice to
have you here. I hope you’ll get the most out of this ball because after next
week,” he leaned in and Sehun’s heart stopped beating for a moment. Kai’s lips
subtly brushed Sehun’s ear before he whispered, “Uneasy lies the head that
wears a crown.”
Sehun grabbed Kai’s necktie before he could pull away completely. “What did you
do to my head?” he growled under his breath, clutching the tie. Kai blinked
vacantly, taken aback by Sehun’s retaliation.
“What are you talking about? Stop causing a scene.” He curled his hand around
Sehun’s wrist to release Sehun’s grip on his necktie but Sehun only yanked him
closer. All eyes were on them now and the Minders were all edging nearer. Mark
jolted up from his seat and so did Donghae.
“Everything adds up, except you.” Sehun snarled. A corner of Kai’s lips quirked
into a smirk.
“Huh. What, Sehun? Are you finally losing your mind?”
“Sehun.” Xiomara called behind him. Sehun continued to glower at Kai although
the latter made no further attempts to pull away. That was when a fist orange
flame punched through the entrance of hall and a shrill alarm went off before
another ear-splitting explosion deafened Sehun as the violent varicoloured
explosion rocked the entire ground. Screams rose to the air and Sehun almost
lost his footing. Kai’s arms came around him, securing him at once and Sehun
spun around in a frenzy as his head spun. Blood pounded in his ears and he
heard Kai calling his name from a distant even though he was the one who was
holding Sehun from collapsing to the ground.
“Sehun!” Kai snapped him back to the reality and Sehun trembled before his
vision cleared. All that he could see was the chaos. Flames and black smoke
invaded the hall. People scurried like ants. A huge bite had been taken out of
the hall and the building was falling apart. “Sehun, are you okay?!”
Sehun steadied himself before he faced Kai who looked like he had seen a ghost.
Then with an assurance of a nod, Kai did not waste another second with Sehun as
he raced forward towards the fires and yanked a girl away from them before she
could be engulfed by it. Amber and the Minders surrounded the Six.
“The entrances and exits are blocked!” Professor Hani cried and Kai immediately
ordered everyone to step back. At his command, the students gathered together
at once and stood their grounds. The teachers took the front line before the
students and Kai—looking incredibly confused and shocked—gaped at the collapsed
entrance.
Sehun lurched forward but he was held back by Mark. “Let me go! I can help!” he
was already ripping the Restrainers off.
“No, Sehun. Stop.” Mark was staring past Sehun now. Sehun turned his head
around to meet the figure that emerged through the flames and smokes—tall, lean
and in confident struts. Kai held his ground for a moment before he retreated
some steps upon discerning the innumerable men who accompanied the leading
figure. Straight through the fire, completely unharmed, the woman, clad in
white clothes and high heel boots stopped a few feet before Kai and the other
teachers. Sehun lost his breath when he recognized the woman.
“Gwenna?” Kai exhaled with his eyes bulging out. Sehun stared at Gwenna. Her
hair was auburn, tied into a high ponytail.
“No.” Dillan said with a trembling voice as she took Kai’s side. Gwenna cocked
her head to the side as if she was amused and smirked at them.
“Gwenna?” she chimed and laughed. Sehun’s chest began to heave. “You seriously
think I’m puny Gwendolyn?” she faced Dillan now. “How are you Dillan? Is this
your son? The Kai that I’ve heard so much about? Where’s the other one?” she
looked around and Kris instantly stepped forward, clenching his fists. “Ah. A
handsome one indeed.”
“What do you want?” Dillan demanded through her grinding teeth.
“What is she doing?” Xiomara asked with tears sheening her eyes.
“I don’t know.” Mark murmured, just as traumatized as the others.
“Mother?” Kai turned to Dillan. “What is this?”
“Leave them alone, Grace.” Dillan stepped forward and stood face to face with
Gwenna. “You have done enough. You weren’t supposed to return after you killed
Allis!”
“Hm. How is Gwen, Dillan? How’s my baby sister?” Sehun felt a blow straight to
his guts.
“Sister?” Kai spat.
“Ah yes. I’m Gracelyn.” She smiled before the smile died. “And I’m not here to
talk.” Without any warning, she grabbed the sides of Dillan’s head and twisted
it, snapping her neck. A penetrating cry and scream killed most of Sehun’s
senses as Dillan dropped dead to the floor. Both Kris and Kai stood still,
frozen and lifeless as they stared at their mother’s dead body. “Now. I won’t
ask again. Where—are—my sons?” she questioned with a grit teeth.
“Kris?” Kai choked on the name. He sounded like he might throw up. As soon as
Kris lifted his hands, one of the men with Grace lifted a gun and the bullet
plunged through Kris’ shoulder. Within seconds, the place fell into chaos.
There was at least one hundred of them, all carrying weapons. Kai charged at
Grace as the other teachers launched themselves at the attackers.
“Donghae, get Sehun out of here!” Mark ordered but Sehun dropped the
Restrainers to the floor before he turned to the entrance. With just a wave of
his hands, a violent gush of wind extinguished only some of the spreading fire.
Kai was fighting Grace one on one and he was losing. Every last one of Grace’s
sharp moves left a bruise on Kai’s body.
“We’re going to help them. And that’s an order straight from me!” He growled at
Mark and the others, and didn’t wait for a response before bursting into a
sprint across the hall. Vaulting over the stage, he caught one of the
attacker’s wrist before he could be shot and twisted the arm. He shoved the man
into the growing fire in the corner and curved the fire into a ball with the
aid of the wind before the flames engulfed and devoured the man alive. When
Sehun turned around, he saw Donghae clutching his arm which was shot and
Xiomara was tackling as many men as she could with her hands lit in purple
flames.
Then out of the blue a massive weight rammed against his side, sending him to
the ground and Sehun, with a spinning head, staggered to his knees before he
noticed the darts on the curtains of the stage. They weren’t bullets, they were
darts. He frantically looked at the person who had pushed him out of the way.
The boy was clad in leather from head to toe with the bottom half of his face
covered in a black leather mask. He locked his eyes with Sehun’s and it didn’t
take Sehun more than a second to recognize those eyes. He had seen them in his
own reflection. The boy jolted up from the ground and launched himself onto one
of the attackers. Wrapping his legs around the attacker’s neck, he brutally
snapped his neck before bringing the attacker down. He looked down at Sehun one
last time before he dashed away. Sehun forced himself up to his feet and raced
after the boy who stopped by Kris’ side. Everyone came to a halt when Grace
cried.
“Okay, that’s enough!” she had her arm clutching Kai’s neck from behind. Kai
was bleeding and he looked like he was about to pass out. “I could end you all
right this instant. Where are my sons that Gwenna claims to be hers?”
A beam of scorching red bolted in her direction. It was Suho. But before the
laser-like heat could even reach her, she blocked it with a simple wave of her
hand and it ricocheted, blasting back to Suho. “Wrong answer.” She muttered.
“She can use other’s Flairs against them.” Kris let out. That was how she was
defeating Kai.
Her sons.
Sehun, out of breath, dragged his feet forward and through the crowd. “Let him
go.” He spat and for first time, Grace heard him and looked for him in the
crowd. When she spotted him, her lips parted slightly and she shoved Kai to the
ground. “Is it…” Sehun swallowed, unable to process anything. “Is it… me?”
Grace blinked, scanning Sehun from head to toe. Behind him, the boy who had
saved him spoke up. “And me.”
Sehun stared at him in confusion. Kris grabbed the boy’s gloved hand. “You’re
not gonna take them away.” he told Grace.
“Well, you and I have challenging views on this.” Grace scoffed and grabbed
Kai’s hair at the back of his head to haul him up to his feet. Kai grunted
tiredly.
“I won’t let you take him.” Kris put himself before the boy.
“Oh, don’t worry. You can come along. Take them.” She ordered her men as she
pulled Kai to walk by mercilessly yanking his hair. Sehun kept his eyes on the
boy who slowly turned to meet Sehun’s exhausted gaze. What is happening?
***** Failing Conditions *****
He flung his eyes open as soon as the blindfold was removed and he winced at
the sudden stream of light that attacked his vision before deciding to clench
them again. An abrupt nudge staggered him a couple of steps forward and
blinking his eyes rapidly, he took in the amount of maroon and gold that
surrounded him. As his blurry vision cleared, he became cognizant of the oval
vast room that was embellished with maroon drapes and yellow chandeliers.
Before him stood Grace with a small fraction of her men holding their posts
around the room. The complacent smirk plastered on Grace’s lips spelled her
satisfaction in her achievement and Sehun could not help but scowl. He looked
down to hands and frowned at the black strap that had his wrists tied tight
together. Restrainers, it registered to him.
“Urgh! Touch me one more time and I’ll fucking bite your ear off, you
motherfucking son of a bitch!” the sudden yawp caught Sehun’s attention
immediately and turned to see the boy from the ball. He wasn’t the boy. Sehun
realized that he was the brother he had yet to meet. Shixun. He was growling
like an animal—he looked like an animal, in restraints. His mouth and jaw were
still covered by the mask as he was forcefully shoved into the room. His dark
hair had a gloss of brown, just like Sehun’s before he had bleached to blond
and his exposed forehead was lined with dirt and soot. He glared up at Sehun
like an animal captivated in a cage before he aggressively turned his eyes to
Grace. Unlike Sehun’s hands which were tied at the front, Shixun’s hands were
pulled all the way back and restrained in a number of straps from the hilt of
his palms up to his elbows. Sehun almost gaped at him. Did Shixun know anything
about him? Did he know they were brothers? Shixun’s upper half of the face
resembled Sehun’s, but he was not entirely sure.
“Finally. We’re all here as a family.” Grace chimed in an authoritative voice,
like a businesswoman, with her hands clasped at her back.
“You’re not my family.” Shixun spat, rolling his shoulders back to stand tall,
challenging her with his chest out. The smile on Grace’s red lips widened as
she paced a few steps closer.
“And who is? Faiion?” her gaze shifted to Sehun. “Or is it my worthless sister,
Gwendolyn?” She stopped before Shixun. “Do you think I went to all those
extents, through all those troubles and brought you here because I treasure
family values or to fulfil my obligation as a mother?” she cupped a side of
Shixun’s masked face and very gently stroked it. “My dear, you’re simply here
because I need you.” She removed the mask and dropped it to the floor. “For my
ambitions.”
Every inch of Sehun’s body felt limp as a shudder surged down his spine. Shixun
kept his bestial scowl on Grace and Sehun kept his helpless stare on him.
Shixun was a piece of Sehun himself. He was his twin brother.
“No, let me rectify that. My ambition. I only have one. That is to destroy the
Four and everything that they have created and achieved.” Grace retreated a
step and grinned at them. “Faiion had been protecting you for far too long and
look at you. You’re the ultimate menace that everyone speaks so highly about.
Ironic because your father used to be just like you. Gwen must be growing
weaker by the day, trying to protect you.” She looked to Sehun. “Even though
she has absolutely no reason to do so.”
“What are you talking about?” Sehun spoke up with his throat burning.
“Haven’t you realized?” she chuckled. “Gwen’s dying. I can feel her weakness.
In which I take absolute pleasure.” She began to pace the room. “Gwen was
always the… preferable choice. She had always been everybody’s favourite,
everybody’s pet. She was enjoying her life, falling in love, loved by everyone.
Loved by the guy coveted by others. While I was locked away in a room, ripped
off of every chance that I had for happiness. It was perhaps luck by chance
that Faiion mistook me for his wife the only night we spent together. As if I
cared about Gwen’s welfare anyway. I wanted to destroy her in every way
possible.” She snorted, but her amused expression faltered. “I was blessed with
two boys—the strongest Flairers in the world. And they took you away from me.”
Sehun, in a shortage of breath, swallowed, trying to digest the information.
Grace lowered her head for a very short minute before glancing up at Shixun and
Sehun. “My sister, when she found out that I was carrying you two, she stepped
aside like a saint and let me live with Faiion in her place. Once again, she
rose above all. God, I hate her.” She let out a breath of laughter. “But then
Gwen saw what I was capable of. She saw the possible future should you two had
been with me. I never wanted to be with Faiion. It was never my intention. I
just wanted to break Gwen. When you were born, she and Faiion both took you
away from me. Faiion was mad at Gwen for lying to him and he was mad at himself
for believing that all those time he had spent with me, he had been thinking it
was his wife. I succeeded to some extent, considering the fact that I broke the
unbreakable bond between Gwendolyn and Faiion. I knew you were with Faiion and
I couldn’t get close to you.” she told Shixun before turning to Sehun. “And
Gwen made sure that I will never find you.”
“So, that’s it?” Sehun exhaled. “You’re doing this just to get back at them
because you had a tough childhood?”
“Tough childhood is an understatement, Sehun.” she sneered. “I couldn’t control
my Flair the way the others did. I was kept away from the rest of the world,
locked in a dark, small room where my Flair cannot be fledged. I only watched
Allis, Dillan, Faiion and Gwendolyn run around the field from the barred window
of my room. I wanted to join them at first. Then after some years, I just
wanted to kill them all. Make them suffer. By the time I had access to all of
my Flair, the Four Recherchés were selected and I wasn’t one of them. I wasn’t
even a candidate.”
Shixun chortled a little. “Would it have killed you to just sit and talk with
your sister instead of destroying a part of FLAC?”
“Oh, what can I say? I like making a grand entrance.” She beamed. It was like
seeing Gwenna smile. “Gwen tried to control my mind when I killed Allis. But
she of all people knows that nobody’s Flair can be used against me. I went into
hiding after they stole you from me. I’ve already ruined so much of the bond
the Recherchés shared. The only thing left for me to do is to destroy the
harmony that they’re trying so hard to hold onto.” She came to a halt before
them and licked her lips. “I’m going to use you two for that.” She said in a
very low voice with half a smile etched on her face. Then withdrawing some
steps, she let out a heavy sigh of relief. “It was really difficult for me to
locate where you were. Until some weeks ago. Now I have intel, enough to know
where you’d be most vulnerable.”
Sehun aimlessly stared at the floor, blinking and panting hard. “Someone’s been
giving you information from the chateau.” He muttered under his breath.
“Hm. So, you are the smart one.”
He raised his head and faced Grace. “Ren. Ren’s the snitch. He knew about the
ball. Donghae must have told him.”
Grace laughed a little. “Doesn’t it scare you? All that ones that you’ve
started to love are housing an experimental guinea pig that is emotionally
unstable? I would have come and gotten you sooner, but I wanted to capture you
both at the same time so that the other would not be alarmed.”
Sehun wiped his eyes with the back of his hands. “Gwenna is exhausted because
she’s keeping you away from reaching me. You’re the one who cleverly
orchestrated all of this.”
“Yes, I am. And you’re right. Gwen’s the only person who can get into my head,
or at least she tries to, and I’m the only person who can get into hers. She’s
dying because I’m wearing her out.” She said proudly. “Gwen was the Yin to my
Yang. Together, we were the most indestructible Flairers. But individually, we
were repelling subjects. Our Flairs were complementary, but interconnected.
When you were born, she and I both knew that together you both will be
invincible and with my nurture, you will bring discord and chaos. That is why
she and Faiion kept you away from each other. Now, isn’t that cruel? Am I
really the villain here, boys? Your powers will never be fully fledged unless
they are concatenated with one another. And just like me and Gwen, one of us
has to be the Yin and the other the Yang.” Her threatening smile broadened as
she fixed her eyes on Sehun. “And… you’re just like me.” she snickered.
“Longing to belong.”
“I’m nothing like you.” Sehun snarled through his grit teeth. “You’re a
monster. A vindictive psychopath.”
“Perhaps. But my bet’s on you, nevertheless, Sehun. All that I can see within
you is darkness and black desires which you’re trying so hard to hide under the
façade of your steadiness and composure. You and I both know that you are…
unstable. As someone speaking from experience, let me ascertain you that your
brother here will overtake everything that you have and earned. In the end,
Sehun, you will be just another useless item ready to be discarded.”
“Stop.” He was beginning to lose his voice along with his breaths.
“All right. You are not prisoners here. Nonetheless, you’re not my guests
either. I don’t wish to keep you here out of motherly love. You’re allowed to
leave. As soon as you’ve given me what I want. If either of you so much as try
to use even an ounce of your Flairs under this roof, I can assure that the
people you call your family now will be harmed and,” she turned to Shixun. “And
your beloved Kris will not leave this place in one piece. Now, I don’t want to
be the kind of mother that would threaten her sons because I don’t really need
to. So, please behave so that I wouldn’t have to throw you in the dungeon and
torment you.”
“And if we don’t oblige?” Shixun asked.
Grace was silent for a moment as she pinned Shixun with a fake loving look.
“You will.” With that, she turned around as the door was opened for her.
“Can I see Kris?”
Sehun glowered at his brother. He was not sure if he was mad, but he certainly
could not take Shixun seriously. Grace turned to look back at her sons one last
time. “Of course. Take him to see the boy,” she told one of her men. “And don’t
release his restraints. Especially not his.”
“Wow. Do I seriously look like that much of a threat? My reputation precedes
me.” Shixun grunted as Grace let herself out of the room. Sehun finally turned
to face Shixun with his eyebrows knitted into a scowl.
“You knew I exist.”
Shixun cocked a brow. “I… kind of had a clue. I mean they were being so
secretive about it. But Kris sometimes blabbers things when he’s drunk.”
“I’m aware.” Sehun clenched his jaw. “This wasn’t how I wanted to meet you.”
“Yeah. I wasn’t actually thinking that I would have to save your butt after all
the big fuss you’ve been making.”
“I didn’t make any big fuss and you didn’t have to save my butt. I didn’t you
need to do that. I was fine.”
“Yeah, right. Fine my ass.” Shixun scoffed. “You sure look like you grew up in
your mommy’s lap.”
 “Walk!” the guard grabbed Shixun’s arm and hauled him to walk. Sehun wondered
if he should stay and when no one objected when he moved to walk by Shixun’s
side, he followed him.
“Yeah. I’ve been having a lot of mothers in my life recently. I’m losing
count.”
“I guess I shouldn’t be envying you then, huh?” Shixun smirked.
“You know, you don’t seem one bit agitated by the fact that we’re kidnapped by
a loony sociopath who calls herself our mother.”
“Father will find us.”
“And if he doesn’t?”
“Well, you heard her. We give her what she wants, she’ll let us go.” Shixun’s
voice incredibly steady and he walked in proud struts although the guard still
had his grip on his arm.
“You actually believe that?”
“Do we have a choice?”
Sehun heaved a sigh. They were walking through a hallway now, on the same
maroon carpets. “I guess we don’t.”
“And just trust me. Big brother knows best.” He flashed a toothy grin at Sehun.
“You’re not… my big brother.”
“Sure I am. I was born few minutes earlier than you.”
“Fuck me. How do you know that?”
“We’ve got a lot to catch up with, Randy boy.” He was brought to a halt before
a red wooden door. When it was sprung open by the guard, Shixun exhaled a loud
gasp and spilled into the pitch black room. “Kris!” he crashed to the ground on
his knees before Kris whose hands were chained to the wall and head hung low.
“Kris? Hey… Kris? Goddammit, can you just release these?! I’m not going
anywhere!” he yelled back at the guard who stood there without any response.
“Fuck you, asshole.” He spat at the man and returned his attention to Kris.
“Did they sedate him? What the hell did they do? Kris? Kris?!”
“Shixun.” Sehun let the name roll off his tongue and that was when the guard
blocked him. Swallowing, Sehun retreated. He didn’t want to leave, but he knew
he couldn’t do much by lurking behind Shixun either. Now it kind of made sense
why Kris was showing him interest. Sehun was not going to jump into
conclusions, but Kris must be close friends with Shixun, enough to stick up
with him against Grace. Sehun glanced around in the hallway. Was he really not
a prisoner then since he was allowed to roam the place?
“Sehun.” He was startled by the sudden call of his name and jumped to meet the
strange man who showed up behind him. “May I show you to your room?” the man
offered like he was the butler or something.
“My… room?”
“You’ll need a bed to sleep in, won’t you?”
“I… guess? But… what about my brother?”
“Madame says that he chose to stay with the boy.”
“You’re kidding me.” Sehun yapped. “I get a room and he gets a shitty jail?”
The man shrugged. “I’m only following orders.” He turned around and began to
lead the way. Sucking in a deep breath, Sehun trod on the man’s heels. He hoped
to hell that Shixun was right about their father coming for them.
“Wait.” Sehun froze before the opened door of a room which he passed by when he
spotted Kai in it, flumped on the edge of the bed. “I’ll… just…” he trailed off
as he entered the room. The man did not protest and closed the door behind
Sehun. Kai kept his face buried in one of his hands with his body slouching
forward. Sehun looked around the room. It was a fairly lavish room with a huge
bed. “She put you in here but Kris in—”
“Did you see him?” Kai’s head jolted up and he stared at Sehun with bloodshot
eyes.
“Yeah.” Sehun bit his lip as he took his seat beside Kai on the bed. “He’s…
fine.” He lied.
“Oh, god.” Kai breathed, scrubbing his face. “They shot us with something. And
now we can’t use our Flairs.”
“I know.” He fixed his eyes on the floor. “I’m sorry, Kai. About your… mother.”
his voice was hoarse and he could barely speak. He wondered if Grace was
favouring him and Kai, but not Shixun and Kris. Kai kept mum as he kept his
gaze on the wall before them. “This is all my fault.”
“It always is, isn’t it?”
“Kai, I’m sorry.” Sehun frowned heavily with his heart sinking to his stomach.
Kai shook his head. His hair and shirt were in a mess. There were bruises on
his face and neck, which indicated that he was not healing as fast as he was
supposed to. “Forget about it. There’s nothing we can do about it anymore.”
“Doesn’t mean you can’t mourn your own mother’s death.”
“I don’t have the strength to mourn right now. Somehow in this mess, it’s
always me who gets fucked. And this time I pulled my brother into it.”
“He’s here because he wanted to protect Shixun and that’s hardly your fault…
And why didn’t you tell you me that I had a twin brother? Why didn’t anybody
tell me?”
“You were going to know about it anyway.”
“No. you were all hiding it from me because you knew that Shixun and I are…
destructive. Grace… is my mother. You… didn’t know about that?”
“No, I swear.” He turned his face and met Sehun’s gaze. “I didn’t know. I don’t
think anyone knew. I didn’t even know she existed until few hours ago.”
“Except Dillan, Gwenna and Faiion.” Sehun sighed. “She wants me and Shixun.”
“Sounds like a fair deal for a mother, don’t you think?”
“No. No. She wants us because she wants to destroy you all. And she seems like
a woman who loves grand gestures and something tells me that she’s planning to
go out with a bang.”
Kai stared into Sehun’s eyes as if he was trying to read something. “Earlier.
You said I was... messing with you head. What was that about?”
Sehun shrugged, shaking his head. “I don’t know. It was like… reality warping.
Or just… I don’t know. It wasn’t the future that I could have dreamed about
because most of it didn’t actually happen. But that… that is the course that
was supposed to take place if we hadn’t gotten the invitation at the last
minute.”
“What are you talking about?”
Sehun blinked. “It’s as if… I knew the alternate course that time could take.”
“Sehun?”
“No, forget about that.” He looked up at Kai again and narrated everything that
Grace had just told him. “We have to do something.” he said after he was done.
“Well, right now, our best bid is to sit it out.” Kai looked even more
hopeless.
“Kai—”
“She’s strong, Sehun. That is why neither Gwenna nor Faiion could defeat her.
That’s why they chose to separate you and Shixun because they can’t fight her.
Allis is dead because of her.”
“Oh… there’s one more thing.” Sehun locked gazes with Kai. Should he tell him
about Ren and break him further?
“What?”
“Nothing,” he let out. “Is… Kris and Shixun…” he trailed off, but Kai caught
the gist.
“They’re trying to be. You’re right. Kris did do that for him. Just as much as
I got into this for you.”
A pang was sent straight to Sehun’s heart. “Um… are you hurt?”
Kai scoffed. “Yeah, I got my ass kicked pretty bad back there, didn’t I? My
neck hurts like a bitch.”
Sehun exhaled a breath of chuckle. “Yeah. Kind of. Here, let me see.” He
climbed up onto the bed and knelt behind Kai before he slid his tied hands
forward to undo the top buttons of Kai’s shirt. He felt Kai shudder a little
when his knuckles brushed his protruding collarbone. Sehun pulled the collar of
the shirt down to examine Kai’s shoulder. “Crazy things happen when you least
expect them, don’t they?” Sehun murmured, dragging the tips of his fingers
along Kai’s bare shoulder. “It puts a whole new perspective on life. We are the
most powerful creatures in the world and even we can’t surmise our end. It’s
like we only have right now, right this instant to live because we’re sure that
we are alive now.”
Kai was silent for long minute before turned his head halfway around to meet
Sehun’s glistening eyes. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“Why?” Sehun breathed, dropping his tied hands to his lap. Kai stared at the
strap for a moment, looking at it like he was about to rip it off. “You
shouldn’t. I don’t want to… madden her.”
“Sehun.” Kai purred, raising a hand to Sehun’s face but he dropped it before he
could even touch Sehun’s cheek. “This is not our end.” He leaned in, so close
that Sehun could feel his quickening breath graze his lips. “But you’re right.
All that we have is right now. Right… this… instant.” He cupped a side of
Sehun’s head as he inclined his head to the side. Exhaling a shaky breath,
Sehun closed his eyes and let out a subtle moan when Kai’s lips touched the
side of his neck.
“Kai.” Sehun moaned, clinging onto Kai’s shirt by the chest with both of his
hands as Kai sucked the spot, gently but with feverish passion. Sehun tilted
his head back when Kai dragged his lips and tongue down his neck and Adam’s
apple. Then with such languid kisses along his jawline, Kai set Sehun alight,
kissing every inch like it was his last kiss.
“I want to forget about you.” Kai whispered with his lips lightly lingering
over Sehun’s trembling ones. “I tried, Sehun. It’s just that… You’re just one
of the many things I failed at. But I don’t want to. I want you… to be my
victory.” Sehun’s heart was at his throat when Kai pressed their lips together.
It burned, it stung and it killed a part of Sehun forever. Kai’s fingers slid
into his hair and clutched the back of Sehun’s head as he kissed him harder,
lightly biting and pulling Sehun’s lower lip. Who the fuck cares? I’m doing
this. Sehun’s fingers fumbled together as they unfastened the remaining buttons
on Kai’s shirt as Kai slid his tongue between Sehun’s lips, demanding full
access to the warm cavern. Their tongues curled around one another and Sehun
desperately sucked on Kai’s bottom lip as Kai hastily pulled his shirt off and
hurled it to the floor. Then without any gentleness or mercy, Kai grappled his
arms around Sehun’s body and collected him onto his lap. Gasping for air
between the kisses, Sehun threw his arms around Kai’s neck and grabbed Kai’s
hair with his cuffed hands before surrendering to Kai’s lips. “Fuck.” Kai
hissed into Sehun’s mouth as he ripped Sehun’s blue shirt apart. Sehun could
feel Kai’s bulging erection against his own. Their naked chests were pressed
together as Kai latched his hands to the sides of Sehun’s waist and kissed him
with pure lust poisoning his every breath. Sehun’s shirt sagged down his
shoulders and collected by his elbows, but he couldn’t take it off because of
the Restrainer around his wrists. Gradually, Kai’s hands snaked around the
waist and he slid his fingers past the waistband of Sehun’s pants, tugging them
lower before he dug his nails into the flesh of Sehun’s ass.
As much as it scared him, Sehun wanted it. He wanted every bit of it. He was
about to lose something invaluable to this man and he was not going to regret
it. Desperately clinging onto Kai’s neck, Sehun rocked his hips, covering all
of Kai’s mouth with his own, tasting and memorizing every inch of Kai’s lips.
The back of Kai’s throat emitted a sharp groan when Sehun gently bit his lip
and with all abruptness, he slammed Sehun back on the bed and placed himself
between Sehun’s legs. He raised Sehun’s hands to the headboard and broke the
sloppy, aggressive kiss. Panting with a heaving chest, Sehun stared into Kai’s
eyes as Kai stared into his. “I’m not going to do it now, Sehun.” he let out.
“What?”
“Not all of it.” With that, Kai released Sehun’s fastened hands and knelt up
before he stripped Sehun off his pants. Sehun, with his hands still
involuntarily resting above his head, felt a gush of blood race to his face and
the back of his neck. Tossing the pants aside, Kai bowed down again. Sehun’s
stomach inflated and deflated rapidly as he sobbed for air. Kai curled an arm
around one of Sehun’s thighs as Sehun raised his knees up with Kai positioned
between them. His breath caught again and again when Kai peppered his stomach
and waistline with his murderous kisses. Sehun could barely look at Kai as Kai
had his piercing gaze on Sehun’s burning face the entire time as he edged
closer and closer to the base of Sehun’s twitching cock.
“Kai.” Sehun gasped and brought his hands to Kai’s hair to grip it while Kai
sucked the skin beneath the navel before he moved to kiss Sehun’s inner thigh.
“Ahh…” His moan consistently held Kai’s gaze.
Kai straightened his back and unbuckled his belt while languidly watching the
mess Sehun was before him. “You’re so beautiful.” He exhaled and unfastened his
pants.
***** Love Can Kill You And Keep You Alive To Feel It *****
Kai was not taking his clothes off fast enough. Maybe he was doing it
deliberately as he lowered his pants only an inch with thumbs crooked into the
waistband and belt on the sides to expose his sharp hipbones, protruding V-
lines and the base of his hardened cock. Sehun’s throat tightened as he panted
and licked his lips, his gaze following the thin trail of hair from the bottom
of Kai’s navel straight to the base of his cock. Sehun’s unsteady breath gave
his embarrassment away all too well. Kai curled his lower lip in and bit on it
as his eyes raked Sehun’s almost naked body, but his stare was predominantly on
Sehun’s deflating stomach and heaving chest. Kai was kneeling right between
Sehun’s legs, so it made it impossible for Sehun to close his legs out of
embarrassment. But Kai did not seem one bit unsettled or self-conscious as he
palpably stared at Sehun’s bare body. Kai squared his shoulders and Sehun
languidly blinked, scanning Kai’s bronze toned body. With his stomach churning,
Sehun sat upright and Kai pulled his thumbs away from his pants. Sehun knew
that his own body was nowhere as perfect as Kai’s, but then again, not many
carried a lithe, menacingly sexy body like Kai’s. Years of toil to shape the
body was clear to see. Sehun looked up at Kai’s face as he leaned in and
pressed his lips to Kai’s abs. Kai carded his fingers through Sehun’s hair
before fisting it at the back of Sehun’s head as Sehun kissed along the line of
hair leading to Kai’s cock. Kai’s caramel skin had its own taste which swooned
Sehun. He had the sudden urge to push Kai down to the bed and savour every inch
of Kai’s body.
It was all very vivid and sharp. Kai was slightly pulling at his hair now and
Sehun kissed Kai’s foreskin at the cock base, wrapping his own hand around his
cock to stroke it. He had gotten off many times by himself, but this was the
first time he was this vulnerable and naked before another man. And he wanted
to give it all to this man. He was scared, yes. But he had no idea why he was
willing to trust Kai. It was the first time Sehun wanted to do this with
someone else. No matter how many times he had made out with Chanyeol or shared
his bed with him, it had never felt anything like this. Now he knew how
superficial his relationship with Chanyeol was. Everything was comfortable with
Chanyeol. Chanyeol was as if the comfortable choice. With Kai, Sehun was not
even himself. This electric jolt that passed down his body even with the
slightest brush of Kai’s fingers was murderous. If there was anything that
Sehun had learned in the past few months, it was the fact that anything can
happen any time. Perhaps that was the incentive for him to surrender to Kai.
But he genuinely wanted this. He had always wanted this. There had never been
this sort of lustful drive when he was with Chanyeol. Right now, with Kai,
Sehun gave in all too easily without even putting up much of a fight. That was
how weak Sehun was. It was somewhat humiliating.
Just when Sehun mouthed Kai’s bulging cock over the fabric of the boxers, Kai
aggressively shoved Sehun back to lie down again. Curling his arms under
Sehun’s thighs, Kai bowed his head, pressing his palms to the sides of Sehun’s
torso and skimmed the skin near Sehun’s hipbone. “Ah…” Sehun exhaled, pulling
his knees together with Kai positioned between them and buried his hands in
Kai’s hair as Kai nipped at the sensitive skin, sucking it red. Sehun saw stars
at the back of his eyes as Kai’s teeth grazed another spot along the waistline.
He was too close to the spot where Sehun wanted to feel the heat of Kai’s mouth
the most, but Kai was particularly avoiding inching closer to Sehun’s erected
shaft. “T-take your… pants off.” It sounded like he was begging and Kai’s eyes
darted to Sehun’s face as he kissed Sehun’s narrow navel.
“I’m trying so hard to hold myself back, Sehun. Don’t push my limits.” he
grunted between his kisses, kissing his way up Sehun’s sternum.
“Nngh…” The jolt that Sehun felt when Kai’s lips brushed one of his pink
nipples. Fuck, Jesus Christ. Sehun mentally cursed with Kai tonguing the
sensitive nub. It was almost impossible to abstain himself from crying out
loud. Then he grabbed Sehun’s bound wrists and pinned them to the headboard,
restraining Sehun from touching himself and Kai. Clenching his teeth, Sehun
scowled at Kai. “That’s not… fair. My hands are already tied.”
A smirk formed on Kai’s red lips as he brought his head up to gaze into Sehun’s
eyes. “Let me help you with that, will you?” he purred against Sehun’s neck and
lowered his hips. Kai used his free hand to tug his pants lower and his
erection was released from the constraints of his boxers. A short grunt escaped
Sehun’s lips when he felt Kai’s cock press into his own. Kai unhanded the strap
and Sehun’s arms fell around Kai’s neck. Breathlessly, Sehun gripped onto Kai’s
hair as Kai covered his mouth with his own. Kai softly kissed his tender lips,
one by one, taking his own sweet time as if to memorize the taste. His slick
tongue pressed against the seam of Sehun’s lips and at the touch of the tips of
their tongues, Sehun locked his ankles at Kai’s back, wrapping Kai’s waist with
his legs. It felt ridiculously obscene and vulgar. Sehun did not even know what
he should do so that Kai would feel good and what he should not do to ensure he
won’t offend him. But Kai, collected as always, continued to kiss Sehun, tongue
around tongue with his fingers brushing over Sehun’s nipple.
He swallowed Sehun’s long, hard moan when he grind his hips against Sehun’s.
“Mnhh… Kai,” he mumbled into Kai’s mouth as their cocks rubbed against one
another. He lost his sanity for a moment there. The friction was outstanding.
Then without any forewarning, Kai shifted and turned the other way. Still with
his pants on, Kai dropped to the bed and yanked Sehun’s hips so that Sehun was
now kneeling on either sides of Kai’s head on the mattress. Sehun’s mouth went
dry when he inclined his head down to drag his lips along Kai’s thick cock. Kai
had his nails dug into Sehun’s ass as his tongue touched the slit on Sehun’s
cockhead. “Ahng…” Sehun’s throat once again betrayed him when Kai tongued his
slit repeatedly. Then simultaneously, they wrapped their mouths around the tip
of each other’s swollen lengths. Sehun’s knees trembled as Kai’s hot and wet
mouth sucked his cock in. Returning the favour, Sehun sank in on Kai’s cock. He
could barely suck in half of Kai’s erection and the head of his cock was
already pressed against the back of Sehun’s throat. A heat of lust and pleasure
mixed with zealous passion surged through Sehun’s body, stirring blood in his
groin. Kai took all of the pulsating member in and repeatedly sucked, slurped
the cock, smearing it with his hot spit. Sehun was a complete novice compared
to Kai, but he was determined to make Kai feel good, too. As Kai shifted to
suck Sehun’s tight balls, Sehun pushed Kai’s cock in as much as his mouth and
throat could manage. He almost gagged, but quickly pulled away. It was a little
easier from there. Sehun bobbed his head, hollowed his cheeks, sucking Kai’s
cockhead and even flicked his tongue along the slit. That earned him a glorious
groan from Kai who involuntarily bucked his hips up, thrusting into Sehun’s
mouth. Kai’s hands were clutching Sehun’s ass and Sehun knew Kai wanted more
than just this, but he was holding back for some kind of reason. It was not as
if Sehun himself wanted to protect his chastity anyway.
Sehun, being the inexperienced, was barely able to hold back from climaxing
when Kai began to suck him harder and faster. He did not want to come so fast,
it’ll be so embarrassing, but there was only so much he could do when Kai was
exhaling short, mind-numbing moans every time Sehun deep-throated his cock. His
cheeks burned like fire when he came close. Sehun pulled back and fisted Kai’s
cock to pump it, resting his forehead on Kai’s thigh. His lungs gave up and
Sehun was sobbing for air. Then letting out a ravenous cry, Sehun released and
burst inside Kai’s mouth. Kai licked him, all over the cock before he almost
immediately grabbed Sehun’s hair with both hands and slid his cock into Sehun’s
mouth. Sehun obliged willingly, wanting Kai to thrust in and fuck his mouth
harder. Kai released his hair out of the sudden and moved away. Sehun
straightened up to kneel as Kai sat up, fisting his cock with one hand and
cupping a side of Sehun’s head with the other. He smashed their lips together
and relentlessly kissed Sehun while belligerently pumping his cock. Sehun
noticed Kai’s chest and neck were stained with his come. Tilting his head to
deepen the kiss, Sehun pressed one of his tied hands to Kai’s heaving abdomen
and he muffled Kai’s violent groan when the thick white ropes of semen shot
from his cock. Panting for air, they broke the kiss with a thin line of saliva
between their lips and rested their foreheads on one another.
“That was…” Kai rasped in a shortage of breath, caressing the back of Sehun’s
neck. “Fantastic.” He whispered and pecked on Sehun’s lips before falling back
on the bed. Sehun gnawed on his lip and leaned down to lick the stains of his
own come off Kai’s chest. When he glanced up, Kai’s mischievous smirk brought
blush to his cheeks. Sehun drew his head to rest on Kai’s chest, tucking his
head under Kai’s chin. They laid there in silence, heads at the foot of the
bed. Kai was beyond exhausted and so was Sehun. Maybe Kai would not have been
this tired if he were not injected with the…thing that prevented them from
using their Flair. A moment later, he felt Kai’s chest and heartbeat steady
themselves before he heard Kai’s soft snores. Heaving a sigh, Sehun silently
got off Kai and wrapped the lower half of Kai’s body with the covers before
weaving his way to the bathroom at the corner of the room.
 
 
 
A sleepless night was well-spent by re-evaluating his meeting with his twin
brother and mother. Neither Shixun nor Sehun had reacted the way brothers would
when they found out they were the other’s twin. It might have been because that
was not the issue to be prioritized at that moment. Their supposed mother had
drawn all the attention to herself, perhaps on purpose. She was a diva, she
loved grandiose gestures. He sat on the bed, slumped against the headboard. Kai
was still asleep beside him. He had at least shifted his head to the pillow.
Sehun did not know what the time was or if it was morning or afternoon. He
glanced to Kai and faintly smiled, biting his lower lip. He brushed a lock of
hair from Kai’s temple and leaned down to kiss his forehead. That was when Kai
stirred and his eyes flung open. “Hey.” Sehun muttered and Kai blinked, letting
out a suffered groan.
“Are we still in…”
“Yes.”
Sighing, Kai rolled to his back before sitting up. He pushed the blanket aside
and buckled his belt. “What now?” he asked in a hoarse, half-sleepy voice and
rubbed his eyes. Sehun was a little disappointed at the blatant and stoic tone
of Kai’s voice.
He did not choose to show his disappointment. “Um… I was thinking. Maybe Gwenna
would find us. She still has access to our minds.”
“You heard Grace,” Kai grunted and got off the bed without meeting Sehun’s eyes
even once. He ran his hands through his messy sex hair and Sehun averted his
stare from Kai’s piercing abs and biceps. “You told me she told you Gwenna’s
weak. It’ll take her a lot of effort to penetrate Grace’s head to get to any of
ours.”
Sehun weighed that option out, too. Grace must have a plan to block Gwenna’s
mind out of Sehun, Shixun, Kai or Kris’ head. “She’s our only chance.”
Kai pulled his shirt on, but left it unbuttoned as he flumped back on the bed.
“It might kill her to find you.”
“I don’t want that, Kai. You sound like I don’t care.”
“I didn’t say that,” he sighed. “I just… hope even if she manages to locate us,
she’ll get help from Faiion. That aside, I have something to talk to you
about.”
Sehun fell silent.
“You… said something about reality warping, right? I mean, you said that you
knew how things would have gone at the ball if… if you didn’t receive the
invitation.” Kai said, rubbing his temples.
“Yes? What about it?”
“I’ve… read something like that in the Flairers’ logbook many years ago… I
don’t know and I can’t really put my finger on it. The Atmokinesis. That’s your
unique Flair, isn’t it? Sub-Flairs are not always uncommon.”
“So… what do you mean?”
Kai sucked a long breath and faced Sehun directly with his eyebrows furrowed.
“I was the one who convinced Dillan to call Jule and invite you the night
before the ball.”
Sehun blinked. “What?”
“What… happened if you hadn’t received the invitation?”
“To you, you mean?”
Kai lowered his gaze. “Was I… drunk?”
Freezing in position, Sehun stared at him. “Yes. Yes, you were. How do you
know?”
“Because I was planning to do that. Then you were coming, so…”
“This is confusing. What are you trying to say?”
“It’s not reality warping, Sehun. It’s something like Meta Destiny
Manipulation. I heard Faiion’s great grandmother had that Flair.”
Sehun let out a dry laugh. “I think you’re overestimating my capability, Kai. I
was sleeping! It was just a dream. Yes, maybe the dream might have been a…
creepy fate call, but something like destiny manipulation… I don’t think so.”
“No, Sehun. If you could do that without even being aware of it, imagine what
you could actually do if focus hard enough.” Kai was meaning this. He was
actually being serious about it.
“Kai—”
“I need you to listen to me very carefully,” he clasped the sides of Sehun’s
face and brought it close. “Gwenna would know what to do. Or your father.
Gwenna probably knows this, too. Sehun, I need you to try. This isn’t some sort
of time travelling bullshit. It changes destinies. For every element in your
story. This is your story, Sehun. That is precisely why only you can remember
the other course of your story. Once you manipulate your destiny, you alter
everybody’s. If you hadn’t received that invitation, Dillan never would have
asked me to take charge of the security and coordinate the pathway to the ball.
I would have… gotten drunk again just like every other night.”
“Exactly! You changed that! Not me.”
“And yet you’re the only one remembers that alternative course. You don’t have
the control over it yet, Sehun. That’s why you don’t know how it happened. When
you decide to change your destiny, it happens somehow. You don’t have to
necessarily be the subject that made it happen.”
“Kai, you’re not making any sense.” Sehun pulled away. “Even if what you’re
saying is true, I don’t know how to do that!”
“Yes, you do!” he jolted up to his feet. “Don’t you fucking see? Grace might
want you for this very reason. She could find Flairers who are ten times as
destructive as you, hell, Kris can contaminate the very oxygen we breathe. She
doesn’t want your Atmokinetic Flair.” He paused for a moment. “That’s why she
wants Shixun too.” He muttered to himself with his eyes widening.
“Why? What’s Shixun’s Flair?”
“It’s not about his Flair. Shixun and you combined balance each other’s powers
out. You could probably master this destiny manipulation if your Flairs are
concatenated, neutralized. You will be able to control your Flairs.”
“I’m really not following.” Sehun nervously laughed. “I swear, I don’t have
this Meta Destiny Manipulation Flair or whatever. I’m telling you, it was just
a dream.” He had been trying so hard to convince himself that it was not a
dream, but now he’d rather it was just a dream.
Kai calmed down and clenched his eyes shut, dragging in slow and steady
breaths. Then he looked to Sehun again. “All right. What if I’m right?”
“What if you’re right? I can’t go around changing people’s destiny.”
“You can reverse all of this.”
Sehun arched an eyebrow. “What do you mean reverse all of this?”
Kai scrubbed his face with his bare palms, letting out an exasperated sigh.
“What if you changed your destiny…? What if you never came to FLAC?” Sehun went
dead silent with his heart swelling. Kai pulled a knee onto the bed and cupped
Sehun’s face in his hands. “Sehun, promise me. As soon as you can control this,
I need you to just…” he swallowed before continuing. “Change it all. Don’t…
don’t come to FLAC. Gwenna would not have taken you in. Grace wouldn’t have
found you. My mother… would not be dead.”
Sehun’s head spun, lost in Kai’s desperate gaze. “Kai…”
“Shixun… Shixun can help stabilize your Flair. If we can’t get out of here, I
need you to at least try.”
“Wh… what will happen to… you?”
Kai pursed his lips and gently smiled. “We’d never meet of course. And… you’d
remember me. You’d remember this.”
There was a sudden knock on the door and it sprung open before Kai managed to
get off the bed. The man or butler from last night stepped in. “Madame Grace
requires you two at her table for breakfast.”
Both Sehun and Kai exchanged a sceptical look without responding to the demand.
***** What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger *****
“Ah, you’re here! Please take your seats,” Grace cooed delightedly, waving her
hand to the chairs. The men who stood by the long table pulled the chairs out
when Sehun and Kai neared the table. Once they had settled in their seats next
to one another, Sehun stared at Grace who took her seat at the furthest end.
The dining hall had to be the most extravagant room Sehun had ever been in. It
was darker than the hall back in Gwenna’s mansion, but the black and gold
chandeliers hanging from the ceiling brightened the hall up just adequately.
Sehun wondered if Shixun was even invited to breakfast. Obviously Grace was
favouring Sehun for some odd, selfish reason. “Look at you two,” Grace hummed a
little, grinning from ear to ear like a sadistic maniac. “You’re glowing. I
take it you had a night well-spent?”
Sehun noticed Kai swallow as he shifted his gaze to the plates set before him
on the table. Grace probably knew every single event that took place in her
house. The thought made Sehun’s cheeks hot in inconvenience. What he and Kai
had shared last night was irreplaceable. But it seemed as though it mattered
more to Sehun than to Kai. The way Kai had reacted this morning proved that it
had not been as special for him. Rather than even acknowledging that they had
just shared a sort of irreversible intimacy, Kai diverted the attention to a
whole new topic, which at this point bothered Sehun more than the fact that Kai
did not cuddle with him in the morning. Well, Kai was not the chaste one here,
was he?
Tearing the pout off his face, Sehun looked up at Grace. “Looking for cheap
thrills, Grace?” he scoffed before immediately averting his attention to the
servant who replaced his plate with a bowl of soup or porridge, he really
couldn’t tell.
“If you choose to sleep with your cousin’s husband in my house, I can’t help
it, Sehun,” Grace smirked and spooned the soup. Taking a taste of it, she
clenched her eyes shut and savoured the soup with a subtle drone of
satisfaction. “Hmm… Well, unless… if he isn’t. Well, I don’t really know the
details. I can’t exactly read minds and nor do I have superhearing senses,
which I’m glad for. But I have this amazing sub-Flair that allows me to feel
people’s feelings. That’s how I steal their Flairs too. It’s just another perk
of having the Flair. And right now, you both reek of sex.” Her smirk widened
into a full smile. “Oh, please unbind his hands.” She ordered one of the men
and the guy hurried to Sehun’s side before unlocking the straps. Released from
the restraints, Sehun rolled his wrists.
“You know.” Kai stated with a tight jaw.
“I’ve done my research,” she shrugged. “Or at least Ren has.”
Kai blinked with confusion invading his expression. “I’m sorry, but did you say
Ren?”
Sehun clenched his hands into fists under the table. “Kai—”
“You haven’t told him?” Grace chuckled. “Ren told me that you’re still in love
with him. Love does nobody any good. Life isn’t romantic, boys. Don’t be so
naïve to think so.”
Sehun let out a shaky breath when Kai fixed him a baffled glare. “What didn’t
you tell me?”
“Ren… Ren isn’t really what you think he is.” Sehun muttered, closing his eyes
for a brief moment.
“Oh, he was. Until I brainwashed him.” Grace admitted after taking another sip
of the soup.
Kai’s jaw fell slacking as he faced Grace again. “What the hell are you talking
about?”
“What I’m saying is that your precious little lover whom you still love with
all of your heart works for me. I found him in the ruins of Gawlreng, kept in
the shadows. Oh, he suffered a great deal of pain, but just one pull of the
trigger and he will explode like a volcano. Snatchers’ best masterpiece. I knew
he’d my best chance of infiltrating Gwenna’s place. Ren liked my offer rather
well. And yes, he still remembers you.” She smiled, biting her lower lip.
Kai jolted up to his feet with murderous haste that the chair was knocked down
and he bolted to Grace before clutching her neck with a brutal anger. Sehun
shot up when Grace’s men rushed to Kai, but everyone stopped in their tracks
with one wave of Grace’s hand. Smiling her demonic smirk, Grace wrapped her
hand around Kai’s wrist and slowly rose to her feet. She slowly pulled Kai’s
hand off her neck and started to twist his wrist. “You still love him, don’t
you? I can see it written all over you. Tell me, Kai. Why are you trying to
stay away from him when you once planned to put your own life at risk for him?
To fuck Sehun at least once?” her tone was ridiculously harsh that Sehun found
himself cringing. Kai groaned a little when Grace clenched his neck. “Gwenna
sees you the same way I do. You’re a powerful Flairer, but you’re worthless.
And you and I both know that. Ren is better off without you, isn’t he? You’re
willing to sacrifice your own happiness for him. But you don’t really care that
much about Sehun. Isn’t that why you treat him as you wish? Use his feelings
for you for your own advantage? What is he? A… distraction?”
Sehun stood his ground, staring at Kai lifelessly.
“Look him in his eyes and tell him you care for him more than you do for Ren.”
Grace spat and released Kai’s neck, shoving him hard that Kai staggered and
stumbled before Sehun caught him to steady him. “He won’t, Sehun. Because by
the end of the day, the people you think care for you are a bunch of bogus. You
cannot expect kindness in this world. You live for your own and fortunately,
you don’t have to depend on anyone.”
Kai was scowling, but he was glaring at the floor when he pulled away from
Sehun and faced Grace again. Swallowing the lump in his throat, Sehun took a
step forward. “Is this your idea of trying to make a point that you have
genuine intentions about my welfare?”
Grace snorted. “Sehun, I don’t care which lifestyle you choose. You can go back
to Gwenna and be the bitch she wants you to be. Until she dies, at least. Which
won’t be too long, I presume. You can be his bitch, too for all that I care,”
she jerked her chin in Kai’s direction. “But you can be so much more than this.
You can be someone that will never have to get hurt again.”
“By that you mean I will become you.” he arched an eyebrow.
“Well,” she settled back in the throne-like chair and crossed her legs. “I am
feared by many. I’ve got nothing to lose, I have no fear, I have no weakness.
So far I don’t see a downside to being me”
“Huh,” Sehun scoffed. “You’ve avoided conflict with Faiion thus far. Correct me
if I’m wrong, but something tells me he scares you.”
Grace’s face turned a little dim. “That is more like respect than fear.”
“Why? Because he’s the only one who has showed you kindness?”
“Well, I can assure you he would not be showing you any mercy if you did
anything to Kris or Shixun.” Kai added.
“Oh, you’re so dramatic,” she groaned. “I love it.” Laughing, she stood up. “I
don’t really give a damn. If you want Shixun and his boyfriend to be safe,
you’ll do as I say.” She tapped a finger on the corner of Sehun’s jaw before
she turned her back to him to walk away.
“Fine.” Sehun’s abrupt answer halted her and she spun around.
“Fine?”
“What do you want me to do?” he asked, crossing his arms over his chest.
“Sehun—” Kai interrupted and Sehun shushed him with a glare.
“What do you want from me?”
Grace bit her lower lip, smiling victoriously. “Nothing much, Sehun. Just your
word.”
Sehun stared vacantly at her.
“I’d be more than happy to release you, your bed buddy and Shixun.”
“And Kris?”
“I’d need a leverage, won’t I? You would want to protect your brother,” she
told Kai before glancing back to Sehun. “You want to protect your friend. And
Shixun truly loves him, although it’s not going to be worth it. I couldn’t
think of a better leverage!”
Sehun, gritting his teeth, clenched his fists so hard that he felt his
fingernails pierce through his palms. “Just spit it out. What do you want me to
do?”
“Your coronation,” she grinned. “Make it Shixun’s as well.”
“What?”
“And at that coronation, you and Shixun’s Flairs should be concatenated and
your control over them restored. When you’ve done that, I’ll come for you and
you will do what I ask of you without a fight. It isn’t really much to ask, is
it?”
Sehun gulped, but remained collected. Even if Grace could not read minds, she
can feel what they feel. He exchanged a look with Kai who looked worried and
infuriated. They knew what Grace’s intentions were. “Gwenna will know what
you’re up to.”
“Oh, that’s the plan,” she said smugly. “I’d love to see her die trying to stop
what’s about to happen. But she won’t succeed and you will make sure of that,
won’t you?” she turned to Kai. “Your brother’s life… in return for locking
Gwenna in the Darkness Dimension momentarily until I ask you to release her so
that I can see her fucking face when she finds out what I’m about to do to her,
Faiion and everyone else she ever loved.”
“Or I could just throw you into the Darkness Dimension.” Kai spat.
“You’ll be thrown into it before you could even get into my head, you idiot.”
She rolled her eyes. “Seriously, Sehun, you could do so much better.” Shaking
her head in disapproval. “That boy. Chanyeol. The tall one. He sounds
fascinating. Anyway, do we have a deal?”
Sehun gnawed the inside of his cheek. Grace did not want to kill Gwenna. She
wanted her revenge by destroying everything that meant the most to Gwenna. She
wanted to alter Gwenna’s destiny. If Gwenna’s destiny is altered, Sehun and
Shixun would not even exist.
Sehun smiled. “All right. If Shixun’s game for the coronation, I am too.”
“Sehun.” Kai hissed.
“Do we have a choice?” he asked nonchalantly. Kai could only glower, but he
knew he had no other way out either. “Let Shixun go, then. We’ll do as you
said.”
“Perfect.” Grace beamed a Cheshire grin and ordered one of her men to come
forth. “See to it they’re sent back to the mansion. I will see you at your
coronation, then.” She raised a hand to Sehun’s cheek and stroked it. “And
here’s an early birthday present for you and your brother.” She took the red
box from the servant and handed it to Sehun.
When Sehun opened it, he found two strings of gold chains. “What’re these?”
“They’re the concatenation link. For as long as you and Shixun wear them, you
will have full and absolute control over your Flairs. It might even help Shixun
with his uncanny sub-Flair.” With one last smirk, she strutted out of the
dining hall.
“Have you gone completely insane?!” Kai snarled, grabbing Sehun’s arm. Lidding
the box, Sehun rolled his jaw and faced Kai with a ruthless expression.
“You told me to at least give it a try. This is me giving it a try. Because it
will be the best for everyone.” He started towards the door which was held open
with a guy holding a couple of blindfolds.
Snatching Sehun’s wrist, Kai hauled him to meet his eyes. “You can’t seriously
buy her bullshit.”
“Which bullshit, Kai? The part where she said you still love Ren with all of
your heart? Or the part where she said you use me as a fucking distraction?
Because I sure as hell bet my money on trusting her on that. For real, look at
me and tell me that you don’t love Ren anymore.”
“This isn’t about love, Sehun. What are you, ten?! You’re almost an adult. Stop
living in a fantasy where you think love is the pivotal element of life.
Because it isn’t. But that doesn’t mean I don’t care about you. You got that?”
he growled.
His heart clenched. “Crystal,” Sehun spat and closed the distance between them.
Gritting his teeth, he stared into Kai’s eyes. “I wish I had never met you in
my life.” he hissed before shoving past Kai.
Time to go back.
===============================================================================
 
(A/N) Alright! We're close to 2000 kudos!!! Around 100 more :D Thanks, fishes!
On top of that, after completing DUE and LN, I'm gonna start on this new fic
(http://archiveofourown.org/works/7031092) It's a vampire/demon au. There'll be
a lot of BDSM, slight dub-con, angry sex with blood, violence (Whoa am I really
writing this...) Subscribe to it and leave kudos! :* Have a good day/night.
***** Down The Memory Lane *****
“They’re back!” one of the Minders announced in an impulsive screech as he
shoved the doors open. Kai entered the mansion after shooting Sehun a dubious
glance. They were dropped off somewhere near the edge of the orchard, just on
the border of the barrier before the Minders on their rounds had found them.
“They’re back!”
Sehun stopped at the doorway to glance back to Shixun who still had his
numerous restraints around his forearms as he vacantly stared up at the
mansion. He had not said a single word since they left Grace’s place and his
eyes were incredibly tired, sleepless and miserable. Blood had drained from his
face altogether and his greyish pallor suggested how fatigued he was. Smiling
subtly, Sehun walked back to him and rested a hand on his shoulder. Shixun
flinched before meeting Sehun’s smile with an emotionless expression. “Hey, you
gonna come inside?” Sehun asked, lightly squeezing Shixun’s shoulder.
“I should go home.” Shixun muttered, lowering his head.
“You will, okay? But you need to get some rest first. This is also your home.
We’re… also your family.” Sehun had to admit. He felt this untoward closeness
to Shixun despite them practically being total strangers.
“I shouldn’t have left him there.” he pinned Sehun with a painful look in his
eyes.
Sehun’s stomach clenched. “I promise you. We’ll get Kris back. I’m going do
everything in my power to make sure that he’ll be safe, all right?”
Only after a moment did Shixun nod his head rather hesitantly, but he did not
look like he had it in him to manage a smile. Sehun gently ushered him into the
house, handing the box Grace had given him to the Minder who had assisted them
back home. “Sehun! Oh, my god!” Xiomara raced down the staircase with Yixing
hurdling on her footsteps—both wearing a similar shocked expression. Kai stood
on the foyer at the bottom of the stairs as if he was waiting for Sehun. Mark
and Donghae bolted out of the hallway, and behind them Ren followed silently.
Sehun kept his glare on Ren as Xiomara pounced on him, throwing her entire
weight onto him, wrapping her arms around his neck as Sehun tightened his
around her scraggy body and fixed Ren a harder scowl. However his attention was
instantly shifted to his sister—his cousin, he supposed—when she broke into
furious tears and sobbed into the crook of Sehun’s neck. Yixing smiled
miserably, rubbing his palm on Sehun’s back before Mark walked over to them and
enveloped all of them in his long arms. Donghae smiled at them from the back.
“I’m glad you’re safe. All of you.” Mark sighed, pulling back from the embrace
and looked to his brother, Kai who stared at Mark for a brief moment before
glancing to Ren. Xiomara wept harder against Sehun, clinging onto his neck.
“Where’s… Kris?”
Sehun noticed Shixun cringing. “Grace has him. She won’t let him go until I do
something for her first.”
Mark’s eyebrows furrowed into a concerned frown. “What do you mean? She hashim?
Like still captivated?”
“Yes. I’ll tell you more about it later,” he withdrew from Xiomara’s
suffocating embrace. “Hey, I’m all right.” he told Xiomara, quite dumbstruck by
her sudden meltdown. He cupped her cheeks and met her bloodshot eyes, wiping
the tears off her reddened cheeks with his thumbs before he turned to face
Shixun who looked a little perturbed like a fish out of water.
“What is he doing here?” Donghae asked, arching brow at Shixun.
“He… will stay with us for the time being,” Sehun announced. “Mark, can you
help with his restraints?”
Mark nodded his head. “We cannot house him, though, Sehun. We can’t afford to
infuriate Faiion. Especially not after what happened. He’s been searching for
them like a mad man that he even threatened to destroy us all if he doesn’t
find Shixun. And Gwenna dispatched all the Minders and her Champions to find
you.”
“Well, things aren’t going to be the same around here anymore, Mark.” Sehun
sighed, glancing to Shixun again. “I need to see Gwenna first.”
“You need to sleep first,” said Yixing. “You look like a zombie.”
“I’ll do that later,” his eyes desperately searched for Chanyeol even though he
already knew he was not there. Jungkook and Amber were nowhere to be seen as
well. Sehun had no plans to keep anything hidden from Chanyeol. In fact, he
might need Chanyeol’s help. “Shixun, you should rest, though. Xi, can you take
him to my room? He can stay there.”
Nobody fought with him on that. Xiomara pulled away, wiping her cheeks with the
back of her hand. “Sehun… Something… horrible has happened.” She sniffled and
rasped as Mark wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
Blinking rapidly, Sehun stared at them. “What happened?” Nobody answered for a
moment.
“We’ll talk about it later. He’s just come home.” Mark told Xiomara, rubbing
her arm.
“What happened?” Sehun demanded again.
“Maybe you should go see Gwenna now.” Yixing patted on Sehun’s back.
“What the hell happened? Why do you all look like this?” He had expected them
to be a little more exhilarated than this to be completely frank. But none of
them seemed to be… alive.
“Gwenna… will tell you.” Mark exhaled.
Grinding his teeth, Sehun turned to Shixun. “I’ll be upstairs shortly. See if
you could catch a wink.” He flashed a brief, but strained smile before brushing
past the group. He looked to Kai once, tacitly ordering him to follow and Kai
obediently followed him. They could barely look at each other anymore, let
alone talk to one another. Even so, Sehun dared himself to speak when they were
in the hallway leading to Gwenna’s room. “You have to do it. No second
thoughts.”
“I don’t like playing by that bitch’s rules.” Kai murmured at his side.
“We don’t have a choice.”
Kai caught Sehun’s arm to stop him and faced him with a clenched jaw. “You
think I don’t want to save my brother? I just fucking lost my mother. I can’t
lose him, too. But all these years, I had been mad at Gwenna for something that
she didn’t do. She doesn’t deserve this.”
“You think any of us deserve any of this? Even now you can’t think of hurting
Ren, can you? Uh-huh. I saw the way you just looked at him.”
“Stop making this about me and Ren. He will pay for what he did, but you’re
forgetting he’s a victim just as any of us!” he hissed in a sharp whisper.
“You’re fucking blind, Kai, that’s what you are. And I can’t do this right now.
I have four days until my coronation. This is rush hour for me. We’re all at
our deadlines.” Sehun pulled his arm free.
“So, your brilliant idea is to waltz in there, throw Gwenna out of the picture
and be your mother’s little bitch?”
“You’ve got a better idea, Kai? Well, let me know.” He waited for Kai’s
response, but all that he got in return was a brutal scowl. “Didn’t think so.”
Rolling his eyes, Sehun marched straight towards Gwenna’s room.
“I’m just saying maybe there’s another way to fight Grace. Maybe we should let
Faiion know. Maybe we should let everyone know.”
“And risk Kris’ life?”
“What’s the point if by the end of all this, all of our lives will be
destroyed?! You’re risking your life.”
Sehun scoffed. “Oh, don’t tell me you suddenly give a shit about me.”
“Sehun, I do care about you, okay?”
“No, you don’t. You just used me because you needed a distraction.”
“And just like that, you let Grace mess with your head,” Kai shook his head
disappointedly. Sehun froze in his tracks and blinked. “She will win, Sehun.
Only because you’re letting her.”
He shrugged the notion off and proceeded to Gwenna’s room. He knocked on the
door twice before entering and found Gwenna perched on the bench of the piano,
gazing out the glass wall. Her long wavy hair fell like a cascade over her
black gown as she turned to greet Sehun with a pair of sombre eyes. Sehun’s
heart sank to the pit of his stomach as he dragged his feet to the piano. “You
have met her.” Gwenna’s smile was painful beyond expression. She looked like
she no longer had the zest and energy within her to fight. It was as though as
she had aged a decade since the last time Sehun had seen her.
He fell to his knees before Gwenna and carefully took her hand into his. “Why
didn’t you tell me?” he asked in a whisper, staring into her withering eyes.
Her fragile smile widened as she carded her fingers through his hair. “Perhaps
I just wanted you to be mine and mine alone. Perhaps I was selfish. I did not
want you to go looking for her.”
Sehun swallowed, lowering his head when his eyes welled up with tears. “You…
did everything… to protect me. You might have had other reasons, but you did
protect me.”
“I fell in love with you and Shixun the minute I saw you—innocent babies lying
next to a monstrous mother,” a tear rolled down her aged cheek as she stroked
Sehun’s temple with her thumb. “I saw your futures in store for everyone if you
were to remain anywhere close to Grace. I wanted to keep you safe. Your father
took Shixun with him, but before he could get to you, I hid you. I knew if you
two were together, Grace will come for you sooner. I had to keep you safe,
Sehun.”
Sehun nodded his head. “And in the process of keeping me safe, you were wearing
yourself out. Is that why you don’t come out of this room? How many years have
you been keeping Grace’s head out of yours so that she won’t find me?”
“Every hour, every minute, every second of the day, Sehun. And I can finally
stop,” she smiled with tears glistening in her eyes. “Because you can free me
now.”
Sehun turned his head halfway around to look at Kai before facing Gwenna again.
“You know.”
Gwenna subtly bowed her head in agreement. “I do. I always knew.”
“I can’t control that… that… Flair. I don’t know how to.”
“You will know,” she glanced to Kai. “Will you allow me some minutes to be with
him?”
Kai looked unbelievably flabbergasted as he rubbed his temples. “Gwenna, I’m
sorry.” He began, but she waved him off.
“Forgiven and forgotten. You are also like my child... I’m sorry about your
mother. She has been yet another one of Grace’s pawns. I know what Grace wants
you to do and I’ll oblige.”
“What?” both Sehun and Kai asked in unison.
“I trust you, Sehun,” she clasped her frail hands on both sides of Sehun’s
face. “You’re going to achieve greatness. You will do the right thing. And,”
her eyes flitted to Kai once again. “Have a little faith in this one, will
you?” she shifted her gaze back to Sehun and rose to her feet. Sehun followed
suit.
“If you know what she wants us to do, why aren’t you doing anything to stop
us?” Sehun asked desperately.
“Because this isn’t my story to tell. It is yours.” She caressed Sehun’s cheek,
looking feebly weak. “I have something for you to see. Will you take my hands?”
she held hands out, palms facing up. Sehun stared at them for a moment and drew
in a shaky breath before sliding his palms over Gwenna’s. “Close your eyes.”
Sehun obeyed at once. The instant faded away like daylight at dusk. His body
felt a shudder before he heard the light chirps of birds around him. There was
light dancing on the other side of his eyelids. He cracked an eye open and
winced at the elaborate rays of sunlight washing the green meadow he was
standing in. With his breath snatched by the sorcery, he glanced up to the
clear blue sky before he felt a gentle touch on his arm. He turned and faced
Gwenna, for the first time in the sunlight. He wanted to call her mother that
instant.
“What… is this? Where are we?” he asked, looking ahead at the grey building
with a tower on its left side. Wild vines and rosebushes had colonized the
primeval manor.
“In my head, down my memory lane.” Gwenna smiled, leading the way. Sehun
hesitated to move his feet for a second, but eventually followed her towards
the tower. “I, sometimes, revisit this place.”
“What is this place?”
“My home.” She looked back at him before she stopped below the tower.
“So… this is… your Flair?”
“One of my many sub-Flairs.”
“Many?”
“As the Recherchés grow older, some of us discover more sub-Flairs which could
aid our original Flair.”
“What about mine? I mean I’m Atmokinetic. It has nothing to with this whole…
Meta Destiny Manipulation Flair.”
“It’s often complicated with twins Recherchés. Your Flairs are interconnected.
Shixun’s Flair might have something to with Atmokinesis and his sub-Flairs
might be complementary to your sub-Flairs. Sehun,” she exhaled heavily. “You
two can either destroy one another like Grace and I, or you can be each other’s
strength.”
“I don’t know how to use my Flairs. I don’t have control of them.”
“You soon will.” She glanced up to the sky. “Do you love Kai?”
Sehun flinched and cringed, gaping at Gwenna. “Wh-what?”
“Because if you do, you should stop lying to yourself.” She smirked.
“I’m not the one who’s lying to myself.”
“Give him some time to prove his worth to you. Don’t ever let go of him because
of your brash foolishness, Sehun.”
“He doesn’t love me, Gwenna.”
“He doesn’t know how to show you that he loves you, Sehun. Don’t ever let what
Grace has told you manipulate you. Do you see that window?”
Sehun followed her gaze and discerned the barred window. “Yeah?” After a couple
of seconds, a little girl with a pale complexion and a neatly combed brown hair
appeared. Sehun’s heart skipped a beat when the girl glanced down at them, but
she did not do anything before she looked away to the horizon. “Who… is she?”
“That’s my sister,” Gwenna muttered monotonously. “I used to bring her crackers
and our mother would reprimand me, telling me to never go by her room again.”
Sehun looked up at the tower again. The little girl had vanished. He heard a
light giggle at the back and spun around only to see an adolescent girl
laughing on the swing hanging from the branch of the oak tree. Behind her, a
handsome boy around the same age as her gently swung her forward. “Is that…”
“That’s me and… your father.”
Sehun at a loss for words glanced up the tower again to see an exact copy of
the young Gwenna watch them, clinging onto the bars of the window as she was as
a child. A cold skin enveloped Sehun’s heart.
“Nobody did right by her. Even I stopped going by her room after… after Faiion.
She was lonelier than ever. I felt her loneliness and yet I did nothing about
it. The only mistake Grace had ever done was to love me unconditionally. When I
was sick, she did not care whether it was day or night. She’d stay by my side.
She took all the beatings for the mistakes I did. When I came home late after
playing with the others, she took the blame instead and would be beaten by my
father all day long. She pined for the happiness I had. All that she wanted was
to feel my happiness. She wanted me to share them and I didn’t even… allow her
that.” Gwenna faced Sehun again with a morbid expression.
“It wasn’t fair.” Sehun barely heard himself say as his chest tightened. For
the first time, he felt pitied Grace.
“Iwasn’t. I tried. I tried to help her control her Flair, but I could have
tried harder. We did not concatenate our Flairs because nobody wanted her to
become a Recherché. She was… just abandoned. When she had you and Shixun, I
thought about leaving Faiion so that she can finally have this bit of
happiness. But Grace no longer wanted that. We had destroyed her and she was
already planning to destroy us.” She held her hands out again and Sehun calmed
himself before taking her hands. In the blink of an eye, he was standing in a
confined room which resembled an infirmary. Everything was hazy unlike the
memory before. In front of him, Grace was lying in a gurney with a baby cradled
in one arm. She looked down at the infant and smiled as the baby tightly
wrapped its tiny fingers around her forefinger. On her side, another baby was
sleeping in a cradle.
A part of Sehun felt like he was about to collapse. Gwenna cupped the sides of
his face and earnestly looked into his eyes.
“Sehun, you can do right by her,” she whispered. “I believe in you.”
Sehun clenched his eyes, unable to breathe properly. When he flung his eyes
open again, he was facing Gwenna back in her room. He twisted his head around
and met Kai’s dazed gaze. “What should I do?” Sehun asked breathlessly.
Gwenna smiled again, retrieving her hands from Sehun’s. “You will know what to
do.” She brushed past him and approached Kai. “I’m ready now.”
Kai’s eyes darted to Sehun over Gwenna’s shoulder before they fixated
themselves on Gwenna. “This will be horrible.” He uttered under his breath,
raising his hands to the sides of Gwenna’s head, but did not touch them.
“I know. Especially for someone who has depended on her mind for all her life.
Go ahead, Kai.”
Licking his lips and giving a curt nod, they both closed their eyes. Sehun,
still panting a little with every image of Grace still fresh in his mind,
stared at them without turning a hair. No one moved. Kai’s eyebrows knitted
into a scowl, but he did not open his eyes and neither did Grace. However, when
they finally did, Sehun saw how black all of Kai’s eyes had turned into before
they slowly regained their original colour. But Grace’s remained black as she
blinked her eyes languidly, almost like a living, breathing corpse. “It’s…
done.” Kai let out, wiping his forehead and lifted Gwenna off the ground. He
carried her to the bed and settled her in it.
“What… happens now?”
“She can do everything. But her mind won’t be here, in the present. There would
be… nothing.”
“I can’t… even imagine that.”
“Yeah.” Kai glowered, looking to Sehun. “What did she show you?”
Sehun shook his head. “She wants me to do something right, but I don’t really
know what. Come on.”
As soon as he had exited Gwenna’s room, Mark and Xiomara stood in the hallway
with their arms crossed over their chests. “Sehun, what did she say?” Mark
rasped when he had spotted them.
“We need to talk, Mark. All of us. Things will be done my way from now on.”
Sehun said with his stomach bubbling acid.
“What do you mean?” Mark cocked a brow.
“What I say goes. Gwenna’s orders are off the table, all right?”
“Is this coming from Gwenna?”
“She did leave me in a charge a long time ago, didn’t she? Until my coronation,
I just need you all to trust me.”
“What the fuck is going on?” Mark’s expression turned deliriously alarmed.
“You heard him,” Kai put himself between Mark and Sehun. “What he says goes.”
“Is he your bodyguard now?” Xiomara was the one to ask.
“Gwenna told me what I should do. So I need all of you to just… just do as I
say.”
“Since when are you the boss?” she scowled. Sehun shook his head and shoved
past them without explaining anything further. He was far too exhausted to
entertain anybody right now.
 
===============================================================================
 
 
When a flower wilted, it brought sweet memories with it. Some cherished the
poisonous ones. Life was uncertain, even when you were a tier above on the
hierarchy of human existence. Sehun, perched on the bottom step of the
staircase, burrowed his forehead in his hands clasped together. He had never
grieved before. Not like this. He did not how to. But one thing was certain.
People were getting hurt and he was not doing anything to stop it. He did not
know how many hours had passed or how long he had been sitting, mourning like
this.
“Sehun?” a calm and gentle voice called his name, and Sehun tiredly brought his
head up to meet Jule who flashed half a smile. “You okay?”
Sehun mirrored Jule’s insincere smile and shrugged. “I keep fucking things up.”
“I heard about what happened. I’m sorry.”
“Hm… Yeah.”
“I guess we will move the coronation date.”
“No. No. We’re doing it on the set date.”
Jule’s eyes widened a little. “Are you… sure?”
“I don’t have a choice,” Sehun muttered to himself, hanging his head. “And…
Jule, there’s a change of plan. My brother, Shixun will be coronated with me.”
“What?” Her eyes bulged out. “When did this progress happened?”
“He’s upstairs,” he pointed his finger up. “Please, can you… take care of it?”
“I… can try. I mean there’s a lot legal work to be done.”
“Jule, I can only depend on you for this.”
Jule nodded and heaved a sigh. “I’ll see what I can do. So the coronation is
back on?”
Sehun closed his eyes. “I’m sorry if I’m putting too much pressure on you.”
“It’s okay.” When she had left, Sehun plunged his face into his knees. He
almost drifted into sleep when he felt the shoulder brush against his.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that.” Xiomara mumbled when he looked up at her.
Sehun sighed and leaned his head to Xiomara’s shoulder. “I just want tomorrow
to be a better day.”
Resting her head on top of Sehun’s, she whispered, “Yeah, me too. Well, at
least today has come to an end. Shixun’s sleeping like a pig. He didn’t even
wake up when I brought him sandwiches.”
“I never expected him to be so… cool to be honest. He’s nothing like me.”
“I guess you wanna talk to him, don’t you?”
Sehun pursed his smiling lips. “Yeah, I do. I wanna talk about a lot of things
with him. I have this huge family now and yet, I feel like I’m an outsider.”
“So… how many mothers do you have exactly?”
“Three and counting.” Sehun snorted. Their attentions were shortly diverted by
Amber’s voice that boomed into the foyer. “Only one I call mother and I
abandoned her.”
“Do you want to go back to her?”
Sehun closed his eyes. Yes. Yes, I do. And maybe he will.
“I don’t know. They injected me with something that restrained my Flairs for
some time.” Sehun heard Kai’s voice down the hall.
“That is insane. I mean she’s not only waging war on you guys, but also the
world. I have a feeling she can brainwash Snatchers.” Amber’s voice boomed into
the hallway as she showed up with Kai by her side.
“Which is why I need you to make sure they don’t get brainwashed.” Kai said as
Sehun and Xiomara’s heads jolted up.
“What makes you think they’ll listen?” Amber scoffed, stopping before Sehun. “I
thought that badass bitch will send your body parts back in a parcel.” She
laughed, throwing herself onto Sehun to hug him.
“Ha ha.” Sehun stammered a little.
“It’s really late. We should all get some rest.” Kai suggested, letting out an
exasperated breath. Xiomara rose to her full height and pulled Kai into a hug.
“I hate you, but I’m glad you’re not dead.” She muttered. Kai looked a little
flushed, but he returned the embrace before withdrawing from it. “Amber, can I
talk to you for a second? Outside?”
Amber gaped at Xiomara with her eyes popping out. “Are you talking to me?”
“Yes,” she turned to Sehun and pecked him on his cheek. “Good night.” They will
all flip out when they found about what Sehun and Kai had done to Gwenna, but
no one ever really bothered Gwenna or went into her room unless she summoned
them. So until someone asked, Sehun was not going to tell anyone.
“Save something to worry over for tomorrow, okay?” Kai surprisingly smiled, but
Sehun could not return the favour. He turned his back to Kai and started
marching up the stairs. “Did you mean it, Sehun?”
Halting midway, Sehun clenched the railing. “Mean what?”
“That you wish you had never met me.”
“I mean I would not regret not meeting you.”
“Just because I choose to not to fall in love with you?”
“No, Kai. But because you choose to ignore the fact that I fell in love with
you.” With just that, he proceeded to his room without waiting for Kai’s reply.
Everyone was hurting. Including Sehun. What was he supposed to do to stop all
of this?
His body stopped functioning for a moment when he saw Chanyeol sitting on the
floor with his back slumped against his room’s door. “Chanyeol?” he breathed
out and attracted the man’s attention all at once.
Chanyeol slowly stood up and stared at Sehun without any expression on his
face. Sehun had not anticipated him to be this nonchalant and cool. “You’re
back.” he spat.
“And… how long have you been waiting here?”
“I wanted to come down to see you as soon as I came back from my training, but
I just… thought I’m not the first person you’d want to see. So, I just waited
here.” He shrugged.
Sehun frowned, pressing his hands to Chanyeol’s hard chest. “What are you
talking about?”
“I was worried sick, Sehun. I searched for you without resting for even a
minute.” He yanked Sehun’s hands off his chest. Sehun noticed the cut on
Chanyeol’s forearm and the contusion on his cheekbone.
“Chanyeol, what—” he gasped, but Chanyeol cut him off.
“I bumped into Kai earlier. I promised to not read your mind, but I can read
his all too well.”
Every drop of blood drained from Sehun’s face and he lowered his eyes, unable
to meet Chanyeol’s piercing gaze. “I was going to tell you.”
“Didn’t you tell me Kai can block his head from anyone? Well, he showed me just
the thing he wanted me to see.”
“I’m so sorry.” He swallowed the lump in his throat.
“I’m grateful you’re back safe. But this… whatever this is between us… is
over.”
“Chanyeol—”
“Not because you cheated on me, Sehun. But because I’m your second best and I
honestly believe I deserve better than second best.”
He did. Sehun could not argue with him on that. He fell as silent as a grave.
“You still have me on your side, Sehun. But I’m no hero or a saint. I won’t
forgive you for what you did.” Sehun did not stop him when he shoved past him
and strutted away with his hands fisted at his sides.
This was a mess. His life had turned into an utter mess and Sehun doubted he
could fix this without altering everything. He entered the room and found
Shixun awake and seated on the edge of the bed. “Did I… wake you?”
Shixun shook his head. Sehun spotted the red box Grace had given him on the
chaise lounge and a couple of untouched sandwiches on the bedside table. “Was
he your… boyfriend?” Shixun asked in a low voice.
Sehun chewed on the insides of his cheek as he flumped on the bed beside
Shixun. He was still in his dirty clothes and sighing, Sehun shot back up to
grab some of his own clothes from the wardrobe. “You should take a shower.” He
tossed the t-shirt and pants onto the bed.
“You didn’t answer the question. Is he your boyfriend?”
“Something like that.” He sighed. “Well, not anymore.”
“I’m sorry.”
Shaking his head, Sehun dropped to sit on the chaise lounge.
“It’s a big… family.” Shixun muttered.
“There’s a couple more that you haven’t met. Jungkook… Amber… Heva.”
“It’s usually just me and dad after Kris went to college. Kai and Dee only
visited during holidays. It feels a little crowded here.”
“You’ll get used to it. It was just me, my mom and dad back then, too.”
Shixun gave a short bow of his head and said no more.
You can do right by her. Gwenna’s words echoed in the back of his head. Maybe
Sehun did not have to change everybody’s destinies. He just needed to alter one
to make everything right.
===============================================================================
(A/N) I posted the foreword for DMBL (Daemonicus Bloodlust) just to tease
y'all. So check it out if you haven't already! http://archiveofourown.org/
works/7031092/chapters/16109563
And as you could see, LN is drawing near to its end too! 
 
***** How The Story Should End *****
Chapter Notes
See the end of the chapter for notes
He was somehow different. Not the hair, not the clothes, but the eyes and the
spirit. His reflection on the mirror seemed like a foreigner. Sehun gripped the
edge of the table as he stared deeper into his own eyes. Flecks of morning
sunrays glimmered in them. Looking down to the gold chains in the red box, he
exhaled a heavy breath and glanced over to Shixun who was still serenely
asleep, safely wrapped in the duvet. Sehun had not managed a lengthy
conversation last night, but he had gotten Shixun to eat the sandwiches. It
felt odd—how close he already felt to Shixun despite having met him only two
days ago. Right now, Shixun was his only real family and perhaps that was why
Sehun had this innate urge to protect him at all costs.
Shixun was not the only subject which Sehun was worrying his head over. Grace,
Gwenna, Kris, Kai and Chanyeol. His heart ached a little when he recalled how
hurt Chanyeol had been and how unfair Sehun was to him. He did not regret
ending things with him, but there could have been a better way, a fairer way.
It was not Kai’s call to have let Chanyeol know about it. Sehun should have had
the chance to face Chanyeol and admit to his mistakes. Admit that he could
never love him, admit that he loved someone else. In spite of caring for
Chanyeol, he was only using him as a distraction—just as much as Kai was using
him as a distraction. Sehun was a being a hypocrite to say the least.
“Good morning.”
“Ah!” Sehun jumped and groaned a little as he silently latched the door before
facing Jule. “You scared the shit out of me.” he let out, calming his breath.
Grinning from ear to ear, Jule shrugged. “I can see that. But you look fresh
considering everything that has happened recently.”
Sehun rolled his shoulders back and ushered Jule towards the staircase. “Well,
I know that I have a long day ahead. No point in moping around all day.”
“True. I need Shixun to sign some papers.”
“Uh… He’s sleeping. Can we not bother him for a while?” Sehun could not feel
bad for himself, but he was allowed to feel bad for his brother who presumably
had been carefree. Maybe he could not do anything about his own fate, but he
can help his brother. He did not know anything about Shixun except for the fact
Shixun lived his life as he wished up until Grace showed up.
“I… guess,” Jule muttered, looking a little perturbed. “Okay. Agenda for
today—you wanted to talk to everyone, so they’re all waiting for you downstairs
in the drawing room. Later, your tutors will be over to test you. I need to
walk you through on the ceremony and your speech. I hope it’s okay for you to
deliver the speech on Shixun’s behalf as well. And you need to go through the
Alliance Declaration that Faiion and you will have to sign. For the next two
days, the place will be crowded with people to fix the ballroom up for the
coronation. I will be sending out the formal invitations today, so I need you
to recheck and approve the guest list.”
“Jule, you know who should be there and who shouldn’t better than I do. Just do
what you need to,” he said confidently upon reaching the bottom of the stairs.
“I just want—uh… some time with Shixun later in the evening. You think you can
clear the schedule up… just a bit?”
“Sure,” she sighed. “Sehun, it’s not about the schedule. I don’t want you to
wear yourself out. I mean…” Her expression gave it all away. She was deeply
bothered about something and Sehun could take a guess. “A lot has happened,
but…”
Sehun crossed his arms over his chest and drew in a deep breath. “But I’m not
reacting the way I probably should.”
Jule looked a little apologetic. “Yes. I thought you might want to… postpone
things. But it seems to me like you’re rushing them instead. Is everything all
right?”
“Yes, yes. Don’t worry about me. I just want the next three days to go
smoothly. Shixun needs to get used to this place first. So I hope you can focus
on him rather than me?”
“I… could do that, I suppose. I’ve only talked to him a couple of times. He
gets very… distracted.”
Sehun chuckled, weaving his way to the drawing room. “He does? I’m sorry, I
really don’t know much about him except for the fact that he… looks like me and
is pretty chill about everything.”
“I can see it’s something that goes on for the both of you.” She smirked,
coming to a halt in the hallway.
Blinking rapidly, Sehun mirrored her smirk. “I’m not… that chill about
everything.”
“Why don’t you let me the better judge of that?” she raised a hand to Sehun’s
arm and gave it a light stroke. Sehun swallowed as his smile faltered. “Anyway,
I have to meet some people in a while. Think you can handle things on your own
for a little while?”
“Yeah,” he caught Jule’s hand when she began to walk away. “I… seriously can’t
thank you enough for everything that you do. I’d be… completely lost without
you.”
Jule’s red lips stretched into a sincere smile. “You don’t have to thank me,
Sehun. It’s something that I just do. Why do you think my father appointed me?”
Winking, she strutted away. You’re the most selfish bastard ever,Sehun cursed
at himself for using Jule this way, but he would truly be helpless without her
and he could not afford to risk anything right now.
“Sehun!” Jungkook exclaimed as soon as Sehun opened the door of the drawing
room. He dashed across the room and threw himself onto Sehun, squeezing the
daylights out of him. Sehun smiled, curling his arms around the boy. Everyone
was there—Yixing, Mark, Jungkook, Xiomara, Donghae.
“It’s okay. I’m like a cat. I have nine lives.” Sehun patted on Jungkook’s back
before the younger pulled away.
“Not funny,” he scowled. “I thought I’d never see you again.”
Clapping his hand on Jungkook’s shoulder, Sehun stepped forward and looked to
Mark who was standing, leaning against the bookshelf. “By now, you guys must
have known that Grace is Gwenna’s twin sister and… my… mother,” he choked a
little on the word. “And Shixun’s. As I promised, I owe you all an explanation.
She held us captive because she wanted… something from me and Shixun. I don’t
know what yet, but at the coronation, she wants us to… concatenate our Flairs.”
“And you’re gonna do that?” asked Yixing from the chaise lounge with an
irritated look on his face. “Look. I could give two damn about FLAC and Dillan.
But she tried to hurt all of us. Not to mention she’s still holding Kris
captive.”
Sehun shook his head. “No, you don’t understand. She’s way, way stronger than
you think. I can’t explain everything right now. But I need you all to trust me
until the coronation.”
“We do trust you, Sehun,” Xiomara sighed, lowering her legs from the table.
“But you’re not exactly convincing us. What are you hiding?”
Sehun sucked a deep breath and rubbed the back of his neck. “Okay, here’s the
deal. Grace has a leverage. I can’t do anything, but follow her orders. She has
a plan and I don’t really know what that is. I have a pretty good guess, but I
won’t know anything for sure until the coronation. So, I have my own plan.
Should it fail,” he held his chin up and remained steady as he spoke. “I need
you all to fight with me.”
“What does she want you to do?” asked Donghae.
“She… she just wants me to have the coronation with Shixun and as I said, to
concatenate our Flairs.”
“Does Gwenna know about this?”
Sehun swallowed the lump that began to rise in his throat. “She… does… Guys,
listen. There’s also something else that Grace asked me… me and Kai to do,” he
fell silent for a moment, surveying the scowls on every one of their faces. “I
didn’t really have the time for a family discussion and I couldn’t wait for you
all to agree on it. Grace wanted this happened.”
“What?” Mark was the one who demanded. Sehun took note of his bloodshot eyes.
Of course, Mark would mourn his mother’s death, too.
“You will soon know, but, Mark, I only did it to… keep Kris safe. Just know
that.”
“What are you talking about?” Xiomara rasped.
“You wanna do everything that this… Grace asked because she has Kris?! Mark,
talk some sense into this fool. We’re mired to shit right now and he wants a
fucking celebration because his crazy ass mother threatened him?!” Donghae
bellowed bestially and Mark turned to fix him a glare. Sehun wondered just
about how much Donghae told Ren just because Ren batted his eyes at him, acting
all innocent. Kai was right. Ren was just as much of a victim as the next
person, but Ren still had a choice and he chose power over love. There was
nothing that Sehun could do to make Kai see that. Ratting Ren out at this point
would be futile. Sehun knew better than to hurt Ren when Grace could hurt Kris
as she wished.
“Kris is my brother, Donghae. You think I’m gonna let him just die? We’ve all
done our shit. But you and I both know Kris doesn’t deserve to be in the middle
of any of this. And neither does Shixun. I’m on Sehun’s side on this,” Mark
spat, looking a little tired. “You were there when it happened. You saw how we
could have lost at FLAC. Are you not seeing that Sehun is standing right in
front of you even after everything that has happened? If anything, I trust him.
If he has a plan, I’m gonna stick with him and help him execute it because
we’re dealing with something far more dangerous than any of us are trained
for.”
“Listen. All that I’m asking is for you to cooperate for another three days,”
Sehun stated firmly. “I will make everythingright. Three days is all I’m asking
for and just until then I need you to believe that everything that I’m doing is
for our good.”
“I believe him,” said Xiomara before Jungkook nodded in the seat beside her.
“Fuck it. He’s gonna be the one giving the orders around here in three days
anyway. Gwenna never would have chosen him if she didn’t trust him. I’ll do
whatever you need, brother.”
Sehun helplessly returned Xiomara’s grin and felt his heart swell in content.
“All that I need you all to do is come to my coronation dressed up all pretty
and as my family. Leave the rest to me.”
“Well, that doesn’t sound like a hefty task.” Yixing chimed, flashing a toothy,
supportive smile. Only Donghae was still glowering. Sehun could only keep his
fingers crossed that nobody would bother Gwenna and in all likelihood, no one
would go into her room uninvited. He could have just told them the truth, but
he neither had the time nor the energy to entertain that sort of drama for the
time being. That’ll have to wait. He needed to settle things with the snitch
first.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
Together with the Minders, a large number of unknown people congested the place
with all sorts of ornaments delivered to the ballroom. The nonstop chattering
and cacophony on the first floor kept ringing in Sehun’s ears as he stormed out
of the kitchen after having a late lunch with the tutors who showed up to run
quick verbal tests to see if Sehun was still normal. No matter how subtly Jule
or the highly trained tutors tried to put it, it was obvious to see that they
were checking he was brainwashed or manipulated externally due to having been
captured by a mass murderer who attacked the most renowned school in the world
of Flairers. Fortunately, they were convinced that Sehun was all good to go for
the coronation. Some of the helpers stared at Sehun as they walked past him,
carrying huge parts of chandeliers while the Minders bowed their heads to him.
Maybe he should get used to this kind of respect, but he was no royalty and it
bothered him.
Taking the south staircase, he raced up to his room to check on Shixun. Jule
had promised to ‘babysit’ him for the entire day, groom him and bring him up to
speed, but Sehun needed to make sure Shixun was comfortable with all of this.
It was no doubt Shixun was brought up in luxury. Sehun himself had seen the
fortress Faiion and Shixun lived in, but maybe all of this was still a little
over the top for him.
Just when he reached the top of the stairs, he jolted to a stop as his heart
skipped a beat. Chanyeol gripped the strap of the backpack he was carrying and
Sehun noticed his jaw tighten. “Hey,” Sehun breathed out, trying to smile, but
it fell apart when Chanyeol scowled a little. A part of Sehun just wanted
Chanyeol to break his promise and read his mind so that at least he would know
about the misery and torture Sehun was going through alone. But no, he should
let go of Chanyeol. He did not want his first best friend to be a part of any
of this. “Going… somewhere?” he vaguely pointed at the backpack.
Letting out an exasperated breath, Chanyeol glanced away. “Yeah. Gonna stay out
for a while. I… wanted to help with the rebuilding at FLAC. I’m allowed back
there.”
“Oh,” he bit his lip, sliding his hands into the pockets of his pants. “Where
will you be staying?”
“My old dorm. Baekhyun wanted me to crash the place.”
“You… still talk to him?”
“I went there yesterday with Jungkook who offered to pay for the damages.
Gwenna sent us. I saw Baekhyun again. It’s pretty fucked up back there.”
“Yes, I was there when it happened, remember?” Sehun nervously laughed, but
Chanyeol kept his scowl on. “So… will you be here? For my coronation?”
Chanyeol was silent for a moment before he shook his head. “I need to… I need
some time away from all of this, Sehun.”
Slowly nodding his head a couple of times, Sehun tried to smile. “Yeah. I
understand. I don’t really… want you to be around either. I mean it’s gonna be
a mess here. And pretty loud, too.”
“Could you tell Gwenna if she asks for me?”
“Sure. Sure.”
Chanyeol turned to grab something from his backpack. It was a small black box.
“Here. I wanted to give this to you. I guess it’ll be an early birthday
present.”
“Oh, wow,” Sehun accepted the box and opened it. His jaw fell slacking a little
when he recognized his FLAC ID card. “Uh… I lost… this.” His smile as shaky as
he exhaled, looking up confusedly.
“Well, let’s just say I found it,” Chanyeol shrugged. “It’s one of the things
that always reminds me of our first meeting.” He finally smiled and Sehun had
never felt worse.
“Chanyeol, I’m really sorry.”
“It’s okay.”
“No, it’s not. I’m sorry I couldn’t… feel anything more for you. I… I… I’m—”
“In love with Kai,” he sighed and patted on Sehun’s shoulder before he leaned
in and brushed his lips on Sehun’s cheek. “You need to tell him that.” He
pulled back and smiled a lazy smile.
“Goodbye, Chanyeol.” Sehun muttered.
“Goodbye, Sehun.” He leapt down the stairs and walked away without looking
back. In his heart, deep down, Sehun knew he was never going to see him again.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
Cons of living in a huge house? Too many twists and turns. Sehun was pretty
stumped when he could not find Shixun or Jule in his room or in any other room
on the two floors. One of the Minders told him that Shixun was gone to get a
haircut, but Sehun sincerely hoped that that was not the case. He had a pile of
documents to go through for the Declaration of Alliance with Faiion, but
instead he was walking in circles in his own house, running through random
people in order to look for his brother. Mark, Yixing and Donghae were also in
the ballroom, working on their parts.
Finally giving up on the search, he returned back downstairs and proceeded to
the drawing room to finish his work. The sun was already setting outside. He
came to a jerky halt when his eyes landed on Amber and Xiomara in the hallway.
“Why?” Amber spat, wearing a brutally miserable look expression. “I’m scum, I
know. A worthless street rat when compared to high class princesses like you.
Whatever that you said last night was out of pity. I like you genuinely and if
you’re just going to sympathize me, save your pity. I don’t need it.”
“Is that what you think this is? Me… pitying you?” Xiomara hissed under her
breath, frowning sadly.
“Yes, I do. So, your sweetheart bailed. She doesn’t want you. And what am I?
Your backup lesbian?”
“Amber,” she exhaled, blinking her bloodshot eyes, looking surprised and taken
aback. “I wanted us to be friends. I thought you… liked me.”
“I do! I liked you from the second I met you… or fought you to be precise. Heva
rejected you ‘cause that girl is as straight as a fucking third grader. And
you’re just comin’ to me because you want an angle of solace. Well, I ain’t no
consolation prize, sweetheart.” She began to walk the other way before Xiomara
caught her arm.
“I never said that. I wanted to… give this a shot. If you don’t like me
anymore, then fine. I’ll understand. I’m used to being rejected by everyone
anyway.” She released her arm and turned around before she looked up at Sehun
tiredly.
“Look who’s talk—” Amber stopped herself when she spun around to meet Sehun’s
unwavering gaze.
“Uh… I was looking for my twin brother. He’s not in my room. Did you maybe see
him?” He told Amber with his neck growing hot.
“This place is filled with people I’ve never seen before, Sehun. What does he
look like? Can you be specific?” Amber rolled her eyes, shoving past Xiomara.
“I just said he’s my twin brother. I don’t think I could have been any more
specific.” Sehun smiled a funny smile, but quickly dropped it.
Amber shrugged, pinning Xiomara with a sidelong glance. “Nope.” With that, she
marched her way out of the hallway.
Sehun turned to face Xiomara. “Everything okay?”
She glanced up at him and sighed. “This might have been the wrong time to
apologize to her and…” she trailed off, exhaling a loud breath. “I really… do
like her, Sehun. I just don’t know how to… tell her.”
Smiling wide, Sehun pulled her into a hug. “You’ll figure it out,” he breathed
into her hair, nuzzling his nose into it. “Maybe you shouldn’t have played so
hard to get.”
“Maybe.” She buried her face into his chest before withdrawing completely. “You
think I should go for it?”
“If I were you, I’d wait until she comes for me. Which I think she’ll do sooner
than you think,” he clasped his hands to Xiomara’s arms. “But you’re not me.
You’re… someone who’s way more determined than I am. And as far as I know,
Amber likes you a lot. She jumped off a cliff to save you. She almost died for
you. Even I haven’t done something like that for you, Xi. Some people just… do
that for us. You meet someone and you just wanna die for them,” Sehun felt his
stomach churn as he straightened up. “Go for it.”
“I wish you’d listen to your own advice. Thank you.” She gave him another tight
hug before she walked away.
Sehun closed his eyes momentarily, steadying his breathing. Maybe the chapters
of his story were ending. Maybe it was about time he was done. His eyes flung
open when he heard the door being shut. Ren stood frozen with his hand on the
doorknob of the drawing room and Sehun’s blood began to boil in his veins.
Clenching his fists, he stomped to Ren and grabbed him by the collars. A sly
smirk formed on Ren’s beautiful face as Sehun snarled at him. “I’ll make you
pay for this.”
“Ah, so you know.” Ren muttered, shoving Sehun’s hand off his shirt. “It’s been
tiring acting like a helpless pup all this while. But it’s nice. Donghae gives
me all the attentionandinformation I need and all that I have to give him in
return is a smile. He’s so much like Kai back in those days.”
“You always knew Donghae liked you.” Sehun spat through his grit teeth.
“Oh, come on. He never was so subtle about it. Kai knows it, too. But Donghae
lives here. Kai’s attention is no use to me.”
“Why would you do that to Kai? Is this… Flair worth it?! Do you have the
slightest idea how broken he is?! How much pain he had been in all these
fucking years because of you?! He has been blaming himself for what happened to
you!”
“I’m tired of being the runt in the group,” Ren hissed, baring his teeth. “Who
wouldn’t want to have powers, Sehun? I did love Kai once. Only because he was a
Flairer and very intriguing. Now, he’s just old and… dumb,” he rolled his eyes.
“Bluggers, is that you what you call experiments like me? Well, we can be more
powerful than you, you know.”
“Your body can only house so much Flair, Ren. When it reaches a certain point,
you… will… explode.” Sehun murmured, prodding Ren back by the shoulder.
“Interesting piece of information I collected from the former leader of the
Snatchers. There’s a limit to the Flairs you can have. But Kai loves you
limitlessly and you took advantage of Donghae’s feelings for you as well. Guess
what? I have great plans for you,” Sehun scoffed, smirking a little as Ren’s
eyebrows furrowed into a frown. Sehun knew exactly what he was going to do.
“I’m going to toss you bitch back down into the pathetic hellhole you were once
in and you will wish you were never born.” He growled, shoving Ren back a
little.
Ren’s eyes flitted over Sehun’s shoulder and he rasped, “Kai!”
Blinking vacantly for a second, Sehun’s heart hammered against his chest before
he turned around to see Kai standing a few feet behind him, staring at him
expressionlessly with a blank face. “Kai—” he started, but stopped when Kai
glanced to Ren.
“I did love you once, Ren,” he said calmly, taking a couple of steps forward.
“A long, long time ago. I held onto that love for many years. Even now, when I
look at you, I want to hold your hand and take you away from here, build a new
life. But we all make our choices and you’ve made yours. I brought you into
this shit, but you decided to stay. I loved the Ren who was human, who was
kind. You’re just someone’s little bitch now. And I’ve never seen you more
pathetic than you are right now.”
“Kai, listen,” Ren panted out and held onto Kai’s arm. “You don’t know how
Ifelt, how it was to be me!”
“Just do your job,” Kai briefly smiled. “Isn’t that why you’re here? To snitch?
Do that. I can’t love you more than I already had. But I’m glad, so glad that
you turned out to be the little cunt you are because at least now, I can move
on. Get the fuck out of here.”
Ren, still panting for air with reddened cheeks, glanced to Sehun for a second
before he furiously strutted out of there, leaving them alone.
Sehun watched Kai heave a sigh as Kai carded his fingers through his messy hair
and rubbed his scruffy jaw. “You didn’t have to do that.” Sehun muttered,
turning his face away.
“Why?”
“Why? Well, because it’s not gonna make anyone feel any better.”
Kai closed the distance between them, crossing his arms over his chest and
Sehun retreated until his back was pressed against the wall. “I’m… leaving in a
moment. I have to go back.”
“What?”
“Yeah. Don’t worry. I won’t tell Faiion anything that you don’t want me to
tell.”
Sehun wished Kai would just speak from afar. He tried to look away from Kai’s
alluring eyes, but he found himself staring at his own reflection in them.
“You’ll be there at the coronation?”
“Of course. Wouldn’t miss the final showdown for life,” Kai smirked. “Where’s
Shixun?”
“You won’t take him with you.” Sehun ordered, scowling.
“No, I won’t. I saw him in the morning and he was pretty determined to stay
with his… brother,” he drew away and started towards the stairs at the end of
the hallway. “Tell him I left and that I’ll tell his father he’s okay, will
you?”
Sehun nodded, gulping. He wanted to yank Kai back, but he really could not.
What would the point be anyway? None of this would matter if he was going to
alter their destinies—that is if he could at all.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
Slamming the pile of papers on the desk, Sehun stretched his arms over his head
and leaned back in his chest, rolling his shoulders. The sudden knock on the
door of the drawing of room made him sigh in exhaustion as he scrubbed his
face. “Come in.”
Jule burst into the room with a bright smile etched to her face, but the
fatigue was palpable on her face, too. “I’m really sorry. I just took Shixun
out for a haircut and to the tailor to take the measurements for his suit. Also
got him some new clothes because he said he’d rather walk naked than wear any
of your clothes. I debriefed him on the ceremony… five times because he
couldn’t understand any of it, but I think he got the gist now. He also signed
some legal papers and I brought him to the ministry to run a brief check. He’s
taking a quick… toilet break now and will be down shortly.”
“Oh, my god, Jule,” Sehun shot up to his feet and hurried to her side before
ushering her to sit on one of the chairs at the long table. “Sit down. You’re
not superwoman.”
“Well,” she smiled faintly. “My Flair does have something to do with it.”
Sehun grinned with all of his teeth, shaking his head as he perched on the
table before Jule. “I don’t know I’m going to ever repay you.”
“Well… Maybe you could get me the dinner you promised weeks ago.”
Sehun pursed his lips and hung his head, picking on his cuticles. He needed to
do this. Drawing in a long breath, he brought his head up and met Jule’s eyes.
“I need to… tell you something.”
Jule stared straight into him, but her smile remained. “What is it?”
“Jule,” he sighed, scratching the back of his head. “I can’t… I’m sorry, but… I
want to marry you. But… it’ll be a … marriage of convenience. And you don’t
deserve that. I don’t want to marry you just because you’re the most amazing
woman I have ever met in my life. And I don’t want you to marry me because…
because you have to,” he noticed Jule’s smile faltering. “This isn’t fair. To
you or to me. But… if you want to do this, I’m gonna go through with it.
Properly. Not just because your father wants you to get involved with my
family.”
Jule raised a hand to rub her forehead. “I never wanted to marry you, Sehun.”
she said at last, meeting Sehun’s eyes again.
“What?”
“You think I don’t know? I know you don’t… you don’t fancy me that way. I
respect you and I… am fascinated by how brilliant you are. You caught my
attention right when you stepped in to save your sister from my brother. I know
about Deevana and my brother, too. He’s a pig, but maybe you can solve that,
too. But at the moment, you had no other option and I understood that.”
“Then… why would you do all this for me?” Sehun rasped, completely flustered
and flabbergasted.
“Because I just wanted to. I wanted to see you succeed.”
“Jesus,” he palmed his face and rubbed his eyes. “I can’t believe this. I don’t
think I will ever meet anybody like you in my life.”
“I know. I’m not just preppy. I’m also cool.” She grinned and shrugged.
“Totally.” He let out a breath of laughter.
“So, if it’s no problem, I’d like to stick around and help you for a little
longer.”
“I’d be a complete mess without you.” Sehun swallowed the sob and leaned in for
a hug. Jule pressed her face into his shoulder and stayed still for a moment
before they both pulled away simultaneously when Shixun cleared his throat at
the doorway.
“Sorry, am I bothering?”
“I’ll leave. Gotta be here early tomorrow.” Jule stood up and excused herself,
closing the door on her way out.
Shixun nonchalantly walked in and fiddled with the paperweight on the table.
His hair was slightly shorter, but way neater. “So, which one is it? The guy at
the room last night? Or Kai? Or that ministry woman who’s creepily nice?”
Sehun shook his head, smiling sheepishly. “Nice haircut.”
“Yeah, I don’t know what was wrong with the one I had before.” He flumped in
one of the chairs and Sehun took his seat across the table.
“I know you didn’t spend much time in the house today, but I hope you’re
feeling home.”
“It’s not home,” Shixun sighed. “But I guess I can manage for a couple of
days.”
Sehun chewed on the insides of his cheek and breathed heavily. “Shixun, you
might not go home.”
His brother looked to him in bewilderment. It was almost eerie to see Sehun’s
copy stare at him with brown hair. “What do you mean?”
“I need you to listen very carefully. Gwenna and Kai believe that I have the
power to change destinies by changing the course a fate takes. Of course, I
don’t know if that’s true or not because it only happened once few days back.
Something triggered it. Gwenna believes that I will control over it once my
Flair concatenates with yours. Just as how you will have power over yours. The
thing is… Grace knows it. I told you about her history with Gwenna, Faiion,
Dillan and Allis last night. I think she wants to use me to alter their
destinies. To ruin them. And if I did that, who knows what would happen to all
of us.”
Shixun’s face wilted like a flower in autumn. He lowered his head.
“If what Gwenna thinks is true, I can change their destinies. But I don’t have
to. Grace thinks I haven’t figured it out and that is an advantage for me. I
can’t do anything right now because I don’t know how it works. I might need
Grace to be present or maybe not, I don’t know.”
“What are you planning?” Shixun asked in a low voice.
“I know you want to be with Kris. I know it’s… hard.”
“You don’t know anything.”
“Shixun—”
“It’s torture,” he growled. “No Flairer can touch me. A single stroke of my
finger and it’ll cut your skin until it bleeds. If I hugged, it’ll feel like a
thousand papercuts on your body. Kris knows that. And yet, he’s been asking...
begging for me to hold his hand every time I ask him what he wants for his
birthday. It’s hard? Even if I live, there’s no point.”
Sehun stared at Shixun’s hands on the table and let out a shaky breath before
reaching for his hand. Shixun reflexively withdrew his hands before the fingers
even touched. “Shixun, I’m sorry.”
“Yeah, I am too.”
“I don’t want to alter everyone’s destiny. But I’m afraid I will.”
“You don’t have to,” Shixun muttered. “Alter Grace’s destiny.”
“What?”
“Change her life course. All the way back to her childhood.”
Sehun blinked at that. “Shixun, that’ll mean—”
“You and I won’t exist, will never have been born.”
Sehun’s breath caught and he slumped against his seat, aimlessly staring at the
paperweight. “You’re… okay with that?”
“If you’re gonna mess with the universe, why not just fuck it up big time?”
Shixun shrugged. “Besides, I’m not gonna do much good in this life anyway.”
“Shixun, I don’t think that’s possible.”
“You haven’t tried it. Kris, Kai, Mark could be born. So will the others. It’s
just you, me, Dee and the silver one who’ll have a huge question mark. But Dee
was born to my father and Gwenna. So she’ll be there, too. Alter just Grace’s
and nobody else’s. But of course, if you alter hers, Allis would still be
alive. So will Dillan. Who knows, we might be born to the President of the
United States.”
Sehun recalled Gwenna’s words again. Do it right by her. Right by Grace. No
matter how much Sehun changed their destinies, it will never matter unless he
altered Grace’s. Shixun had a very good point and it was a good idea. An
unselfish idea. “Why do you want to do this?”
“I just don’t want to be in this body.” Shixun mumbled.
Sehun rose to his feet. “Don’t tell anybody about this.”
“Who would I tell? The tomboy who called me ‘apple pie’ a while ago?”
“You should get some sleep. Did you eat?”
“Yeah. Jule bought me some cheeseburgers.” He smiled and shot up. “Think about
it. Maybe this is how you’re meant to free me.”
When Shixun had left him alone, Sehun blinked his eyes rapidly as his head
spun. It felt as though his brain was clogged. His shoulders felt heavy. He was
going to do it. Maybe that was how his story was supposed to end.
Gasping for air, he bolted out of the drawing room and broke into a sprint. His
heart was breaking into shards and silvers, and he knew this was his last
chance. Whatever that was going to happen, Sehun knew it would not end well for
him. Gwenna knew that, too. She wanted Grace to have a happy life. And right
now, Sehun wanted it, too. He did not want to destroy his mother. As he raced
up the staircases, his stomach tossed and turned. Only some lights were turned
on in the dim hallway on the third floor. Please still be here. Please still be
here.
Blood pounded in his ears when he saw Kai shutting his room’s door, clad in a
leather jacket, all ready to leave. “Sehun?” he gasped when he raised his head,
but was immediately cut off when Sehun pounced on him, throwing his entire
weight onto Kai until the latter staggered a step back. Locking his arms around
Kai’s neck, he clutched a handful of Kai’s hair and rammed their lips together
in a brutal force. Their tongues immediately invaded each other’s mouth as
Kai’s arms enveloped Sehun’s body in a tight grip. Sehun swallowed the short
grunt Kai made at the back of his throat when his back was slammed into the
door.
“I want you,” Sehun breathlessly moaned into Kai’s mouth, kissing his lips
hungrily as Kai slid his hands into Sehun’s t-shirt to latch them onto the
sides of Sehun’s waist. “I want you, Kai.” He panted as his lips throbbed and
body arched into Kai’s. Kai did not need to hear it again. His hand fumbled on
the doorknob behind him, but when he had opened the door, he stumbled into the
room, yanking Sehun with him.
Sehun slammed the door shut and ferociously stripped Kai off his jacket before
ripping his shirt off. Kai pulled his arms out of the sleeves, shed the shirt
and cupped the sides of Sehun’s face with both of his hands before kissing him
full on mouth. Then breaking the kiss, he shoved Sehun onto the bed and
unbuckled his belt while Sehun hastily pulled his t-shirt off.
Chapter End Notes
     Just so you guys know lol it's around 6:30 am now and I haven't slept
     at all cause I was up writing this chapter. My shoulders are
     screaming in pain...
***** Sealed (Second Last Chapter) *****
He ripped his belt off the loops and undid the zipper and button of his pants,
but did not shug them off as he climbed onto the bed, slithered between Sehun’s
legs. A soft breath escaped Sehun’s lips when Kai latched his mouth on Sehun’s
crotch over the fly of Sehun’s pants and kissed it all the way up to the
waistline. There was no rush. Sehun steadied his breath, tenderly combing his
fingers through Kai’s hair while Kai kissed along a side of Sehun’s waist
before he nipped at the skin, gently grazing his teeth over it. Sehun closed
his eyes and swallowed as Kai suckled at the flesh on the corner of his waist,
undoing Sehun’s pants with one hand. He drew his soft lips to Sehun’s navel and
kissed it before sucking the skin below the navel and nipped at it, leaving it
red. “Oh, my god, Kai.” Sehun panted out, fisting Kai’s hair at the back of his
head. Kai latched his teeth to the other side of Sehun’s torso and bit it
before kissing it down to the edge of his waist which he stroked with his hand
right after soothing it with his tongue.
“You have such a beautiful body, Sehun.” he sighed heavily and peppered Sehun’s
toned abdomen with languid, sharp kisses. Sehun clenched his jaw, wondering if
Kai also revered Ren like this when they made love. He should not be thinking
about it at all since Kai had somewhat ended things with Ren for good. But
Sehun knew Ren had been Kai’s everything. It would be difficult for him to
replace Ren.
“More beautiful than Ren’s?” he let the words slip out of his mouth and Kai
stopped altogether before he raised his head to stare at Sehun in something
like disappointment. He straightened up to his knees and Sehun followed suit
with a sharp pang of pain in his heart when he noticed the hurt in Kai’s eyes.
Kneeling before Kai, he raised his hands to Kai’s shoulders and rested them
there. “I’m sorry… I didn’t… mean to say that.”
Kai blinked lazily, gazing into Sehun’s guilty eyes. Then heaving in a sharp
breath, he clasped his hands to the sides of Sehun’s head as Sehun’s own hands
slid down to Kai’s hard chest. “You are perfect, Sehun,” he kept a hand cupping
Sehun’s head while the other was lowered to Sehun’s waist before it snaked back
and pressed to the small of Sehun’s back, Kai pulled him close until their
abdomens were pressed together. “Look at me,” Sehun raised his gaze to meet
Kai’s eyes. “You are one of the extraordinary people I’ve met in my life. I’m
not saying that because I love you, but also as your teacher. Never in my life
have I been blessed to have the honour of knowing such an outstanding student
like you. In just months, you… you turned out to be… okay.”
“Okay?” Sehun snorted, chuckling a little. “I kind of saved your ass back there
at FLAC.”
“One time. I need more fingers to count how many times I’ve saved your ass,”
Kai thumbed his nose at Sehun before leaning in to lightly tease Sehun with a
brush of their lips. “All right,” he caressed Sehun’s cheek, smiling half a
smile. “Maybe if you weren’t so cocky. You know you’ve gotten so much cockier
than before?”
“Couldn’t help it. I learned that from the best.” Sehun breathed out a laugh
before it died altogether. “Kai… Did… did you just… say that you… you… love
me?” he exhaled in a raspy puff, staring down at Kai’s pink lips.
Kai’s gripped the side of Sehun’s face and pressed a tender kiss to Sehun’s
lips. “I’m going to love you even when you’re gone,” he whispered and drew his
thumb over Sehun’s lower lip with his gaze following his thumb. “You’re doing
this because this is our last chance together, isn’t it?”
Sehun curled his trembling hands around Kai’s neck. “Kai… I have to.”
“Do you really want this?” Kai asked under his breath, frowning heavily,
skimming his lips over Sehun’s. “If you change your destiny, you… will remember
this even if we… we never would have met.”
That was not the plan anymore. Sehun was not going to alter his own destiny. He
was going to change Grace’s. But Kai did not need to know that. “I think I want
that,” he lied. “I want this. And I want you.”
Kai slid his hand to the back of Sehun’s head and clutched a handful of the
hair. “And I want you, too. I know that you’re an independent boy now, but—”
“Boy? Stop embarrassing me.” Sehun faked a scowl.
“Okay, what do you prefer? Man? You’re still a teenager,” Kai, smiling smugly,
dropped his hand from Sehun’s hip and let it slide between Sehun’s thighs. An
electric jolt passed down Sehun’s spine when he felt Kai cup and grip his
crotch as his mind was cast back to the moment when his mouth was wrapped
around Kai’s cock. “My point is… you’re on your own now. Nobody is there to
hold you back,” his tone turned serious again as he sucked in a deep breath.
“But just tonight… can you trust me and let me hold you… protect you?”
He wanted Sehun to submit to him. Smiling with a thin layer of tears lacing his
eyes, Sehun brought their mouths together in a benign kiss and took his time to
savour every corner of Kai’s lips, stroking the seam with his tongue and
memorizing the frame of his lips. “I’m all yours tonight, Kai.” He panted,
pressing their foreheads together. Kai palmed Sehun’s cock before he smashed
their mouths together, curling his tongue around Sehun’s. The kiss was brutal
to say the least, but Sehun had absolutely no complaints. Kai slipped his hands
into Sehun’s pants and grabbed his ass, clawing into the flesh. Kai swallowed
Sehun’s moan, yanking Sehun’s pants and boxer briefs down enough expose his
ass.
“There’s a million reasons why we shouldn’t do this right now.” Kai groaned
when Sehun bit his bottom lip before slowly tugging at it.
“I don’t care,” Sehun rasped. “Just… just fuck me. I want you inside me.”
Kai need not to be told twice. Sucking Sehun’s lips off, he turned Sehun by the
shoulders and shoved him onto the bed to lie on his front. The waistband of his
pants and boxer briefs gripped him at his thighs as he propped up on his knees
while pressing his forehead into the pillow. Kai hooked an arm under Sehun and
kissed along Sehun’s protruding spine while his other hand gently fondled
Sehun’s bared hip. Pressing his lips to the nape of Sehun’s neck, Kai’s breath
tickled the skin along with his sensuous kisses. “I need you, Sehun.” Kai
whispered by his ear and gently sucked on the earlobe. “I need you in my life.”
Sehun raised his head and turned it back to let Kai’s lips find their way to
his own. “Me too.” He muttered before Kai claimed his all of his mouth.
Gliding down on Sehun’s back, Kai tongued his tailbone and Sehun helplessly
exhaled a moan as Kai’s palm ghosted over a side of Sehun’s ass before he
squeezed it, leaving it painfully red. Then pressing a gentle kiss onto the
projecting tailbone, Kai hauled the pants off Sehun’s legs along with the boxer
briefs, stripping him stark naked. Sehun settled on the bed, on his stomach and
closed his eyes as he felt Kai’s hot breath on his ass before he kissed the
spot and slowly sucked on the flesh, biting it a little. Just when Kai’s tongue
slid between the ass cleft, Sehun bucked his hips and knelt up, fisting his
hardening cock. His heart was pounding in his throat. It was not like Kai had
not touched his naked body before, but he had never breached these parts of his
body and honestly Sehun did not know how sensitive those parts were. Kai was
right. This was their last chance and Sehun had longed for the intimacy for far
too long. The likelihood of Sehun never existing if he reverted Grace’s fate
was great and Kai would not even know about him. So, even if they did this now,
no one was going to be scarred and Sehun would not have to live with only the
memories of Kai’s touch on his body.
“K-Kai…” he let out in a shaky breath when Kai’s tongue slithered over the
sensitive muscles of his opening. Blood filled Sehun’s cheeks and he began to
pant hard. It was not as though Sehun was ashamed, but it was a little
embarrassing. He had never even thought of this before. He gritted his jaw and
buried his face into the pillow, clenching the sheets. Kai smeared the hole
with his saliva, subtly tonguing it in circles. It was uncomfortable at first,
but when Kai pulled back and rubbed the opening with his fingers, Sehun sank
his teeth into his lower lip and bit hard. Spreading his knees further apart
voluntarily, Sehun fisted the sheets harder as Kai cupped his balls and brushed
his lips to Sehun’s puckered hole again. His tongue rimmed the tender muscle
before Kai sucked on it, sliding just the tip of his tongue in. Within seconds,
Sehun was moaning in an odd form of pleasure, gasping out curses while Kai
licked and sucked all over the cleft of his ass, and kneaded his tight balls.
“Oh, my god! Kai!” he groaned breathlessly into the pillow and reached back to
grab onto Kai’s hair as Kai dragged his wet and warm tongue up and down his
hole. He could not possibly describe the sensual pleasure he was receiving, but
it felt so good that the pillow could barely muffle his moans. The louder he
moaned, the more Kai wanted, too. His fingers were digging into Sehun’s thick
ass as he mercilessly gripped and fondled his balls. When Kai stopped, Sehun
shamelessly gasped and instantly felt embarrassed for seeming desperate, but he
really did want more. His head jolted up to accept the sloppy kiss Kai’s hot
mouth ravaged his own with. Sehun sucked on Kai’s tongue as Kai planted his
hands into the pillow. The head of Sehun’s cock brushed against the mattress
when he pushed his lower body up to grind his ass against Kai’s hardness over
the pants.
Breaking the kiss, Kai sucked his middle and ring fingers before hungrily
kissing Sehun’s mouth again. He then drew the saliva-slicked fingers along
Sehun’s throbbing lips and Sehun curled his tongue around them, giving them a
good suck. Kai pulled himself down again and Sehun inhaled a quivering breath,
readying himself. When the two wet fingers pressed against his hole, Sehun bit
his smiling lip and let out a soft moan as Kai rubbed his hole with his
fingers. Just like his tongue, the fingers were slick, warm and wet as they
stroked the rim of muscles. Sehun pressed his chest and upper abdomen to the
mattress, but arched his ass back, thrusting into Kai’s mouth when Kai began to
tongue his hole again, reaching all the way to Sehun’s balls and licked the
skin between the opening and the balls. Kai sucked Sehun’s balls into his mouth
and Sehun sobbed for air as his cock swelled painfully. It was agonizing to
restrain himself from coming. The hot cavern of Kai’s mouth burned everywhere.
Then Kai retreated for a moment, pulling his arching cock out of his pants.
Sehun’s mouth drooled as he stared at the precome leaking on the slit of Kai’s
cockhead. Kai gripped Sehun’s hips and pulled them back until Sehun’s ass was
pressed against Kai’s knife-sharp hips. Sehun twisted his neck back and licked
his lips, dragging his gaze down Kai’s perfectly sculptured body. The pants
were sagging down his hips with the waistband of his boxers lowered enough to
expose the sharp V-lines below his abs.
Kai’s cock were pressed into the cleft of Sehun’s ass and he slowly began to
thrust hips forward. “Fuck!” Sehun hissed and dropped his head back onto the
pillow as Kai’s hard cock stroked his tender hole with Kai drove his cock
between the ass cheeks. Kai’s hipbones slammed into Sehun’s ass again and again
that Sehun felt the soreness spread. Kai threw his head back as a subtle moan
emitted from his throat as he kept thrusting, gripping onto Sehun’s hips. He
stopped all of a sudden and flopped Sehun over to lie on his back.
With his chest heaving, Sehun sat up and hooked his fingers into the waistband
of Kai’s pants before yanking them down. Kai shifted to the edge to kick the
pants off before he returned to his position between Sehun’s legs and forced a
belligerent kiss onto Sehun’s lips. This was happening. This was finally
happening. Body against body, skin against skin, mouth against mouth. Sehun
puffed and panted into Kai’s mouth, propelling his hips up to grind his cock
and balls against Kai’s. “Please, Kai. I… want you… inside me.” he gasped,
digging his nails into Kai’s back.
“It will be a little painful,” Kai whispered warningly and frowned. “Are you
sure you want this?”
Sehun nodded his head. “Yes… Yes.”
Kai gave the two fingers a good suck, slicking it with a thick layer of spit
before he slid them into Sehun’s ass crack. Kai covered Sehun’s mouth at once
when he gasped with Kai’s finger breaching into his opening. There was not any
pain. It was rather uncomfortable than painful. Sehun clenched his eyes and
focused on the kiss instead, but it was impossible to ignore the odd sensation
of Kai’s finger sliding in and out of him. Kai slowed himself down to let Sehun
get used to the feeling. He kept fingering Sehun long enough for the younger to
feel a little comfortable. When he pulled his finger out, he broke the kiss and
spat on his fingers before pushing the finger in again. But this time, he
pushed in another finger in. When the opening stretched, that was when Sehun
felt the mild pain. But Kai moved his fingers gently at first, turning them
around to stretch Sehun wider. “Are you okay?” he asked in a murmur when Sehun
closed his eyes and drew in a breath.
“Y-yes… I’m… fine,” he panted out as his eyes flung open. He reached up to kiss
Kai on the lips. “Harder. Finger me harder.”
Kai pulled his fingers out and rubbed the outside of the hole in circles for a
moment as if to soothe it. “Let me know where it feels good, okay?”
Sehun muttered an ‘okay’ with trembling lips. How could it feel good? He was
not sure if he was the one who was doing something wrong because it did not
feel good. And then it happened when Kai shoved his two fingers back in and
this time, he fingered him hard and fast, furiously massaging the soft insides
of Sehun. “Aaahh…” he moaned out, arching his body into Kai’s as the fingers
curled around a bundle of nerves. Something like electricity passed down
Sehun’s loins when the tips of Kai’s fingers brushed an incredibly sensitive
spot. It felt spectacular! Sehun almost came and cried, but instead he gasped
sharply, piercing his fingernails into Kai’s back, so deep that Kai winced a
little before he smirked tiredly.
“Here?” he stroked the spot again, kneading the tender flesh, smiling and
Sehun, out of breath, let out a violent moan.
“Yes,” he gasped breathlessly. “Yes, there.” It felt as though Kai had just
turned some switch on. It did not only feel amazing, it robbed Sehun of his
senses as Kai continued to finger that spot. The subtle pain still lingered,
but the fragile pleasure outshone the pain. “Kai… I’m gonna…”
Kai withdrew his fingers at once. “We don’t have any lube. This will hurt a
little. But it will feel good soon, okay?”
Sehun couldn’t care less. He just wanted Kai’s fingers or cock or whatever in
that spot. Kai spat onto his palm before applying the spit all over his cock.
Sehun rested his head back on the pillow and tried to steady his breaths.
“Uhh…” he grabbed onto his own hair and moaned when Kai pressed the tip of his
cock against Sehun’s gently stretched opening. He rubbed the cockhead all over
the sore hole, smearing his precome on it. Kai leaned forward and reconnected
their mouths again, drawing Sehun into a passionate kiss as his long, thick
cock lusted after Sehun’s hole. Sehun wrapped his legs around Kai’s waist and
locked his ankles at the small of Kai’s back before he felt his opening stretch
with Kai’s cockhead penetrating it. “Aahh… oh, god…” he fought for breath and
clenched his teeth so hard in a repulsive pain as Kai pushed himself in.
“You’re too… tight,” Kai huffed a heavy breath out and caressed a side of
Sehun’s face. “Sehun, try to feel me instead of the pain.” His lips ghosted
over Sehun’s as Sehun struggled to breathe with the discomforting feeling and
soreness inside him.
“Kai…”
Kai raised his head and gazed languidly into Sehun’s eyes. Sehun could almost
feel the misery Kai was trying to hide. It must have been long for him too. He
probably had not made love to someone in a while. Sehun wanted to make him feel
good.
“I love you.” he breathed out, cupping Kai’s cheek and swiped his thumb over
Kai’s cheekbone. When Kai kissed him again, he slowly began to thrust and Sehun
bit Kai’s lower lip a little. Kai’s cock slid in and out of him in a slowburn
as the tip of his cock slammed into Sehun’s prostate.
Sehun’s aching shaft was caught in the friction between his and Kai’s abs as
Kai fucked him senseless. With just four or five strokes, Kai picked up the
pace and started to fuck him mercilessly. He fisted Sehun’s cock and pumped it
in sync with his thrusts. Their mouths were all over their faces and necks, and
their hands travelled everywhere they can reach on each other’s bodies. At one
point, Kai yanked Sehun’s hips up to get a better access and his thrusts became
aggressive. Sehun had little control over the pleasure and the pain the
penetration bestowed, but both were unbelievably incredible. He felt so
vulnerable and he made noises that he never thought he could. Kai started to
really fuck him and honestly, by then, Sehun just wanted to get fucked. It was
extremely overwhelming and his lungs struggled. Kai’s cock drilled into him and
Sehun was shaking, writhing furiously. It hurt, but it felt so good. So wrong.
And so right. With every thrust, Sehun’s mind turned number and number, and he
found himself bursting into pleasurable cries and moans. “Fuck me h… harder,
Kai!”
Kai straightened up with sweat beads trickling down his chest and abs. He
flipped his hair back, carding his fingers through it before he threw one of
Sehun’s legs over his shoulder and pulled his hips up to thrust in deeper.
Tears rolled down the corners of Sehun’s eyes as his moans and screams filled
the room. Kai, drenched in sweat, gasped for air with his hair curtaining his
eyes again. He was hot, the way he fucked Sehun blind was fucking hot and the
way he bowed his head to lick the slit of Sehun’s cockhead while stroking his
length was definitely hot! Sehun swooned and cried when Kai went deeper,
knocking into his prostate. Sehun throbbed around Kai’s cock, clenching him
hard.
“Kai… Kai! I’m going… to… come!”
Kai licked his smirking lips and pumped Sehun’s cock harder. “Come for me,
baby.”
“Ahh… fuck!” Sehun helplessly screamed when wrapped his hand over Kai’s and
thrust into Kai’s hand. When he came, exploding into hot white load all over
Kai’s abs and hand, Sehun bit his lip so hard that he tasted a little blood.
Collapsing into the bed, he wept for air, but he was not allowed to catch his
breath when Kai burst inside him, filling Sehun with his hot come.
Every inch of Sehun’s body and mind felt both alive and dead at the same time.
Kai did not pull out as he fell onto Sehun, pinning him down with his entire
weight and they laid still, finally catching their breaths. Sehun cupped the
back of Kai’s head and pulled him into a lazy kiss. Their lips and tongues
sloppily moved over one another. With sweat and semen sticking to their skins,
Kai nestled his head in the crook of Sehun’s head and drifted into a rest.
Sehun clenched his eyes shut and softly stroked Kai’s hair as he memorized the
feeling of Kai’s flaccid cock and come buried inside him.
“When you,” Kai muttered after a while and Sehun cracked his eyes open.
“Throbbed around me,” Sehun gulped with his cheeks burning. “Did you feel…
good?”
“Yes, Kai,” he sighed. “I felt so good. It was… beautiful.”
Kai did not bring his head up, but Sehun could almost feel the relief Kai felt
as he melted into Sehun’s arms.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
He could barely walk or even stand straight as he stared into his reflection in
the mirror of the bathroom as he pulled Kai’s shirt on. He did not bother to
button the shirt up as he turned the tap on and laved his bare hands and face
in the cold water. So this what they called getting fucked until you can’t
walk, huh? He sheepishly smiled in spite of the stinging pain between his legs
and turned the tap off before grabbing the fresh towel from the counter. Kai’s
shirt clung onto his arms and he wondered if he should button it up as he dried
his face and hands. Then deciding against it, he tossed the towel back onto the
counter and bit his smirking lip, running his hands through his blonde hair to
push it back. The night was still young.
When he exited the bathroom, he found Kai sprawled onto the bed with a hand
tucked under his head as he darted Sehun a cocky smirk. He had not bothered to
cover himself up as he lied there, naked from head to toe as he ogled Sehun,
scanning up and down with his lower lip curled between his teeth. As Sehun wove
his way back to the bed, Kai sat up.
“You know. Ren called you an old guy.” Sehun sniggered, climbing onto the bed
and then onto Kai’s lap. Kai caught the sides of Sehun’s hips before he slid
his hands under the unbuttoned shirt to stroke the sides of Sehun’s torso.
“Well, I’m like wine. The older I get, the tastier I become.” He smirked and
pressed a kiss to Sehun’s sternum before he dragged his lips down the chest to
Sehun’s navel.
“Oooh,” Sehun smiled, entangling his fingers in Kai’s hair. “I definitely like
the way you taste.” He tilted his head back and exhaled a moan when Kai kissed
his nipple before sucking it. Sehun bowed his head when Kai raised his and
looked up.
“Promise me you’ll come looking for me. And tell me everything… everything that
happened between us.” Kai begged in whispers against Sehun’s lips.
“Kai,” Sehun frowned. That can never happen, but Kai did not know about Sehun’s
real plan. “I won’t come back to FLAC… or into your life.”
Kai closed his eyes momentarily without arguing back. Instead, he kissed Sehun
full on mouth before he drew his lips and tongue down Sehun’s neck, chest, abs
before he brushed his lips on the slit on Sehun’s cockhead, enveloping the limp
dick in his hand. “Are you still lax?”
“I think so.” Sehun murmured, sliding his slender fingers down Kai’s back. “Why
don’t you find out?”
Kai pursed his grinning lips for a second before he sucked on the base of
Sehun’s cock.
“Nnghh… Kai…” he breathed out when Kai wrapped his mouth around his cock and
began to suck it. Sehun pulled his knees slightly apart as Kai brought his
licked fingers to his ass. Sehun held onto Kai’s shoulders and drew in a long
breath as Kai pushed two of his fingers into his gaping hole while sinking in.
Sehun’s cockhead pressed into the back of Kai’s throat as he became hard with
Kai’s fingers fucking him. Sehun reached down and fisted Kai’s cock which was
even bigger as flaccid.
He was going to spend the rest of the night riding Kai, making love to him as
much as he could because by morning, he knew he will not have this with Kai
anymore. “Is this your early birthday present?” Kai hummed as he kissed up
Sehun’s neck.
“Something like that.”
***** Final Chapter *****
“Do you believe in soulmates, Sehun?”
“Soulmates? I… never really thought about it. Why—do you?”
“No, not really. But I want to believe in it now.”
“Why?”
“Because it’s less hurtful that way… and I would still have something to hope
for. Soulmates will always find their way to one another no matter which
reality they’re in, no matter which universe, world. I know this sounds like
bullshit and trust me, I feel like a moron for saying this. But maybe it isn’t
so moronic. Something to hope for…”
“You’re saying that we’ll find our way to each other? Because we’re… soulmates?
I never pegged you for a man who believes in that kind of paradoxes, Master
Kai.”
“Yeah, well. I never pegged myself to be the man who’d sleep with a teenage boy
and endorse all sorts of taboos.”
“Shut up.”
“You sure are cocky now, you know.”
“Only because you let me do that. All right… Something to hope for. If we’re
soulmates, we’ll find our way.”
 
That was how their magical night ended with Sehun’s head nestled into Kai’s
stone-hard chest, both tucked under the spent sheets. He will see Kai again
tomorrow at the ceremony, but he will not be able to hold him like this or
watch him fall asleep in his arms. They won’t get to make promises that they
were not going to keep or smile into their gazes while pressing their hands all
over each other’s their bodies. That was it. They had given everything they can
last night, all night, and now it was over. All that Sehun was left with when
he kissed Kai goodbye at sunrise was a sore body, a swollen heart and the
warmth of Kai’s skin and lips on his own, along with a beautiful memory of last
night that Sehun doubted he could forget even in death.
Two things Sehun was certain of when Kai walked out the room that morning: 1)
His body and mind were sort of recharged, and he suddenly had the strength to
go through with, with it all. He did not care anymore. He felt fulfilled, he
felt like he had fulfilled a purpose, and all that was left for him to do was
end it. Gwenna was sure Sehun would be able to do this and there was no one as
reassuring as Gwenna. She had faith in him, she believed Sehun could do it and
now it was time for Sehun to believe that he could. Even if he could not work
his way around the Destiny Manipulation Flair, he will still fight Grace until
the end, until his end. And 2) He desperately needed to sleep. He ended up
watching Kai sleep after their third round instead catching any wink himself.
He could not sleep anyway. His lower half of the body had gone numb after the
third time Kai came inside him and he felt more alive than ever, although Kai
surprisingly had fallen asleep. He could not blame the man. He had rode the man
off like an animal for hours. However, the fatigue finally struck Sehun when
Kai left and he needed to conk out at least for an hour, but not on that bed
that still smelled like Kai. He cannot be the guy who came five times in one
night. Yes, five fucking times. It was a little embarrassing when he could not
help himself after the second and third rounds, but it seemed to have pleased
Kai greatly so that was good.
He stealthily limped out of the room after washing up and fully dressing
himself. He hoped the soap and water had washed the sex smell off his body and
hair as he hurtled down the stairs like he still had something shoved up him.
It did not hurt as much as he had anticipated. There were just a subtle thrum
and a tender sore spot, but he prayed to heaven that no one would catch him
like this. Unfortunately, there were men and women everywhere. It was still so
early in the morning! For a moment, Sehun thought about finding refuge in
Xiomara’s room which was definitely nearer, but she would give him endless piss
for fucking a man twice his age who was also everybody’s rival. Sehun could
roll his eyes right now. People liked being dramatic around here.
Deciding to just proceed to his own room, Sehun smiled at everyone that passed
while grinding his teeth. They were carrying all sorts of stuff from cutleries
to tablecloths. He tried to walk straight as he hurried down the hallway before
he silently slipped into his room and locked the door behind him. As he slumped
against the door, his eyes darted to Shixun who was cocooned in a bunch of
blankets—maybe as a safety measure, Sehun couldn’t tell—and was still sound
asleep. The early morning sunlight was already raking through Shixun’s dark
hair and for a moment, Sehun felt guilty, watching his brother sleep. At least
Sehun had a closure with the love of his life, but Shixun was just here because
he had no choice. Something told Sehun Shixun never had choices. He felt a pang
of pain in his heart when he realized Shixun was the one who would not be
having a happy ending no matter what his destiny was. But he could not
overthink right now. He needed to crash down and just fucking sleep the fatigue
off, but the chaise lounge looked incredibly uncomfortable right now. There was
plenty of space beside Shixun although he was sleeping in the centre. Sehun
silently slid into the bed and moved slowly enough so that he won’t wake Shixun
up.
His bed smelled different, but it still felt the same. His eyes shut themselves
without any trouble at all and that was when the weight shifted on the mattress
before he heard the whimpers. He did not want to wake up at first, but then he
heard Shixun gasping and he tossed on the bed. Sehun’s eyes flung open and
Shixun was already sitting up before he glanced to Sehun, scowling. “Are you
mad?!” he snapped, sliding to the furthest end of the bed. “Do you have a death
wish?!”
“Did you have a nightmare?” Sehun asked, ignoring Shixun’s infuriation.
Shixun shook his head almost immediately. “No,” he gazed to the inaccessible
window and sighed, looking back to Sehun again. Sehun sat up. Looked like he
would have to go without sleeping. “Where were you last night? Are you just
coming to bed? You showered? What’s all the ruckus outside?”
So many questions. Sehun pushed his hair out of his forehead. “I was… busy with
work. Yes. Yes. And decoration for the coronation tomorrow. Since we’re up, I
guess we might as well at least make use of the full day. Well, I think I have
some things to go through with you and Jule about the ceremony. But other than
that, we have the day to ourselves. You wanna go down for breakfast? We can ask
Mrs Gump to make us something you fancy.”
“Busy with work?” Shixun cocked an eyebrow, smirking a little.
“That’s… what you picked on out of everything that I just said?” Sehun frowned.
“You reek of sex, you know,” he scoffed and jumped to his feet as Sehun felt
his cheeks grown hot. “So, did you like it deep or do you like it going all the
way in?”
If he thought that was a subtle of saying it, he was wrong. Sehun could have
turned as red as a tomato. This guy was more blatant and shameless than
Xiomara. “How did you… know?” he decided to ask instead.
Shixun shrugged, already making his way to the bathroom. “I don’t know. It just
feels like I know you well… well enough at least. The closer I am with you, the
weirder it is.”
“Weird?”
“You know what I mean. It feels weird to be around you. Like I feel like you
know what’s in my head.”
“I don’t.”
“Well, I don’t either. But I still know you’re happy.”
And Sehun knew Shixun was miserable. “I’m not exactly happy. Can you hurry up?”
“If it’s any comfort, Kai totally digs you for who you really are.” He smiled.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean we’re both identical, but he has never had such intentions for me,”
Sehun wondered how Shixun knew so much about them. Maybe Kris told them. Maybe
Kai told Kris. Did Kai talk about his feelings to Kris? Did Kai talk about his
feelings at all? He did last night. “Not that I know of at least. But that
could also be he thinks I’m a spoiled brat who’s a pain in the ass. He hates my
guts.”
“He cares about.”
“I know. But he hates me.”
“Well, in Kai’s defence,” Sehun got off the bed. “He hates everyone.”
“He hates everyone but you.”
Sehun could not help but smile at that one. He liked it. He liked being Kai’s
only one. But he really was not happy about Shixun talking about this. Not when
Shixun himself can’t be with the one he loved. “Enough about that. Get
showered. We’ll have breakfast, then you’ll have to at least act like you’re
interested in the coronation even if we might not have a life after it.”
“Maybe we’ll be born to the Queen or something.” Shixun shrugged again,
stepping into the bathroom. “And stop bossing me around. I’m older than you.”
“By a few minutes.”
“That’s a lame argument point.”
Sehun was not sure why Shixun was being so nonchalant and carefree about what
was in store for them. Then it occurred to him that maybe this was Shixun’s
coping mechanism. To take it lightly and trivialize even the most serious
problem. He wasn’t sure. Maybe. Just maybe. Shixun was so calm when they were
kidnapped by Grace too. He was always so calm. He was like the opposite of the
worrywart Sehun.
While Shixun showered and dressed himself, Sehun managed to take a power nap
and he presumed it was enough. The day had started and there was no point in
sleeping anymore. He stepped out of the room after changing into some fresh
clothes. “Hey,” Sehun called his brother as they made their way to the kitchen,
ignoring the strangers in the house. “I’ve been meaning to ask you. What’s your
main Flair?”
“I don’t really know which one’s my main Flair or sub-Flair,” Shixun said,
leaping down the steps. “I can cause natural disasters. Earthquakes,
hurricanes, floods and stuff.”
Sehun gaped at him for a minute. It made sense. Their Flairs were somewhat
connected, only that Sehun’s wasn’t necessarily disastrous like Shixun’s.
“Don’t tell me you have… ever…”
“When I was young,” he shrugged. “When I couldn’t control it. I still don’t
think I can control it, but the Restrainers help. Mild earthquakes and forest
fires. That’s why my dad… our dad forbids me from leaving the fortress without
Minders. He can be a bite in the ass sometimes.” He jumped onto the railings of
the next flight of stairs and glided down it before he landed on the floor,
startling the heavens out of Jule who showed up.
“Jesus Christ, good morning, Shixun,” she gasped and Sehun frowned a little to
find her here so early after running around until midnight last night.
“Morning, ma’am.” Shixun tipped his invisible hat.
“Sehun, you told me there’s some chains for the concatenation. Can I have
them?” Jule asked, looking up at Sehun.
“They’re in my room in a red box on the dresser,” he didn’t think he wanted to
climb all the way up again. “Think you can fetch it?” he smiled out of guilt
for making her do more things even when they were no longer promised to one
another.
“Sure,” Jule smiled pleasantly. “I was also wondering if it’s okay with you if
my father concatenated your Flairs tomorrow. I couldn’t find any other minister
who’s available to do it.”
“Uh… sure. Would he do that?”
“I’m sure he would. I’ll ask.”
“That’s great, then. We’re just gonna grab something to eat. Do you want to
join us?”
“No. Sorry, I have to head out in a while.”
“All right.” Sehun bid her goodbye and ushered Shixun to the kitchen.
“You could call him Dad, you know.” Shixun said and Sehun blankly blinked at
him.
“Huh?”
“You said Faiion. He’s your father. You should call him dad.”
“Well… I don’t know him. I’ve never even seen him once,” no, he had. He had
seen him in the memory Gwenna showed him. Young, broad-shouldered, full of
blood. “And you’re his official son, I guess.”
“He misses you all the time. Why do you think he wanted you to come home?”
Sehun sighed. He did not have it in him to argue with Shixun over this. He
guessed his father wanted him because he was his son. Well, he had more rights
than Gwenna did. That probably pissed Faiion even more when Sehun joined
Gwenna’s side instead.
After breakfast, Shixun leaned back in his chair and stared at the plate he had
just wiped clean. Sehun helplessly gawked at him. Shixun ate like a horse with
zero table manners. He finished all seven waffles, eight sandwiches and two
hard-boiled eggs all by himself while Sehun was still struggling with his
second waffle. Also, Shixun used his hands, which Sehun doubted he had washed.
But Mrs Gump apparently liked him. She even said he reminded her of her dead
pug. That coming from Mrs Gump was sentimental and important. Sehun had Mrs
Gump to thank for making sure he always went to bed with a full stomach. Even
though he thought the woman still sort of found him annoying, she did care for
him. Sometimes, it was Mrs Gump who dished on the gossips about how much of a
Casanova Faiion was, breaking girls’ hearts everywhere he went. She never
talked about Grace, though. Sehun decided to ask.
“Mrs Gump?” he muttered, settling his fork down as Shixun helped himself to a
bunch of grapes. The woman ignored him as she scrubbed the sink clean. “Do you
know anything about Grace?”
Mrs Gump froze altogether for a moment before she turned around to grimace at
him. “What of that witch?”
Both Shixun and Sehun exchanged a woeful glance. “Did you… perhaps know her?”
“Oh, I knew her. I told you. She seduced Faiion.”
Sehun blinked. “You… never told me that.”
“I sure did. Faiion was promised to Allis. Gwenna married him because she had a
bread in the oven. Then your mother seduced him. I’ve been feeding them since
they were children! I knew that Grace was up to no good. I knew she always
wanted what Allis and Gwenna had.”
“You knew… my mother’s Grace?”
“You two get out of here if you’re finished!”
Sehun fisted his hands on his lap and exhaled heavily. “Shixun, come on.” He
knew he was not going to get anything else out of Mrs Gump and he did not need
to. Maybe he was a little pissed off that Mrs Gump just called his mother a
witch, which Grace totally was, he was not going to argue. But she became like
that due to circumstances. Nobody was born evil even though some crazy
scientific-genetic researches tried to prove otherwise.
“Where are we going?” Shixun asked, treading on Sehun’s footsteps.
“Don’t you want to meet her?”
“Who?”
“Gwenna?”
Shixun fell silent, but he caught up with Sehun. “She’s… not our mother.”
“She’s the closest thing we have to a mother, Shixun.”
Shixun did not argue with him on that. Of course he would not be able to accept
the woman who separated his brother from him and was constantly at his father’s
throat, but even Shixun should be able to see that Gwenna was not a bad person.
Whether he liked her or not, Gwenna had protected him from Grace all these
years, too. Sehun was not sure what he should expect on the other side of the
door. According to Kai, Gwenna would still be able to function as a normal
person, but her mind will be shut down and she will not be sentient to say the
least. It was like falling into depression, only thousand times worse and
emptier like there was a void in the centre. Sehun could not even imagine how
it would feel to be empty, drowning in nothingness. It raised the hairs on his
skin.
“We… Kai has her in the Dimension of Darkness,” Sehun said warningly as he
pushed the door open without knocking because he knew Gwenna won’t answer.
There was not really a manual for this. Even Kai did not sound so sure about
the effects of his Flair. “I’ve never really seen anyone in that state before.”
Shixun entered the room without any fuss. “I have,” he muttered much to Sehun’s
surprise.
“You… have?” he silently closed the behind him. Shixun froze in a place.
“Yeah… Kai… has done that… Many times. Especially to the people he hates,” he
corrected himself after a pause. “Hates more than he hates me. I’ve seen them
roam around, eat, walk, sleep, but their mind is just not there, you know. It’s
like they’re dead. Like a zombie. I’d rather die than suffer something like
that.” He walked over to the piano where Gwenna was seated at. Sehun’s heart
skipped a beat. He needed to spare Gwenna from this horrifying misery quick.
“It isn’t called the Dimension of Darkness for nothing. There’s nothing but
dark.” He fell to his knees before Gwenna and earnestly stared into her empty
eyes for a long minute. Sehun could not dare himself to do that. He did not
even want to go near Gwenna. “She knows I’m here. But she doesn’t want to do
anything.”
Gwenna looked down to Shixun before she raised her head to stare out the glass
wall again. “She did it for us.”
“What?” Shixun’s eyes flicked to Sehun.
Sehun shook his head. “Shixun, I need you to be ready tomorrow. No backing
out.”
Shixun rose to his feet. “I never back out or back down, Sehun. I’m ready.”
“How can you be so… relaxed about this?”
Shixun shrugged, weaving his way back to Sehun who was still standing by the
door. “I don’t think I’m that scared about the whole destiny manipulation
deal.”
“What? You don’t trust I can do it?”
“Absolutely not.”
Sehun’s eyes widened. “You don’t think I can pull it through?!”
“I have my doubts,” he snorted. “But if it works out, great! If it doesn’t, I’m
holding a grudge.”
“If it doesn’t work out, we have a war, Shixun. With our mother who can use all
of our Flairs against us.”
“Not yours or mine. How is she going to stop a natural disaster that’s not
directed at her? A tsunami will destroy us all. How is she going to stop global
warming?”
Sehun scowled. “I don’t… I’m not the cause of global warming.”
“Whatever. My point is, she can’t do anything when it comes to us because she
herself knows that we can wipe everyone out including ourselves if we meddled
with nature. She can’t stop an earthquake or a sandstorm because she can’t
rebound or reflect our Flairs if it’s not directed to her.”
“We can’t harm everyone else just to get to her.”
Shixun shrugged again. “That’s what she’s counting on. That we won’t harm
everyone else. If this destiny stuff of yours is real, she can’t reflect that
either. You won’t be directing it at her. You’ll be directing it at the
universe, I suppose?”
“I suppose.” Sehun echoed.
“Either way, she knows she can’t beat us.”
“Why are you so eager to go on this suicide funk?”
“Better be useful by dying than living, eh?” he patted on Sehun’s shoulder, but
only where the shirt had the skin protected.
“Shixun… What if this… Flair of yours… what if you could control it after we’ve
concatenated?”
Shixun stayed mum for a long stretch before he slowly shook his head. “Don’t
worry. I won’t back out. You have my word.”
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
This was it. The day possibly everyone had been waiting for. There was a huge
hullabaloo which extended to every corner of the mansion. The belligerent
mayhem was mostly caused by Xiomara and Jule who were endlessly popping into
Sehun’s room to either make some sort of retort or elaborate on the plan for
the day. By now, both Sehun and Shixun had every agenda memorized. Sehun of
course had to do more on his part. He was beyond exhausted and he had not had
enough sleep. The dark circles and bags under his eyes drove the makeup people
over the edge and even Xiomara droned on it for almost ten minutes when she
dropped in this morning to wish him and Shixun a loud ‘Happy Birthday’, and to
drop their suits off. Sehun had wanted to wish Shixun ‘Happy Birthday’ last
night, but when he got back to the room at night after finishing all of the
last minute work and helping Mark register all the guests so that they can
enter the barrier, he found Shixun fast asleep on the chaise lounge with layers
of blankets on top of him. This was Sehun’s first birthday without his parents
and he really missed them. But it was better this way. He could at least save
them the pain.
Now, he was just glued in a chair for hours and lunch was delivered to his
room. Shixun was getting ready in some other room with his own team of
hairdressers. Sehun would admit this was a little over the top and he suspected
this had all been Xiomara’s evil doing. But he could not complain as he sat
there bored for hours as he was groomed from head to toe. He tried to keep Kai
or the lovemaking out his head, but he ended up thinking about them throughout
the grooming session which lasted for longer than five hours. He had his hair
washed thrice and face washed twice. They were experimenting the looks on him
because everything looked too “soft”. Xiomara had specifically ordered them to
make Sehun look “fierce”. Why and how would he look fierce for god’s sake? But
again, he did not complain. Surely this was better than Xiomara personally
dressing him up. Jungkook had come in eventually to wish him ‘Happy Birthday’,
but even he seemed busy. There must be a lot of guests because Sehun could
already hair a wild cacophony of noises.
“He’s almost here!” Xiomara exclaimed, breaking into the room. She had already
changed into a ravishing blue evening gown and had hair tied into a messy bun
with locks of her silver hair hanging at the sides in curls. It took Sehun a
moment to snap himself back to reality. She looked absolutely stunning! But
Xiomara did not seem to be anticipating such a reaction from him because she
froze and gaped in shock. “What?!”
“Nothing, nothing,” Sehun struggled with one of the hairdressers spraying
something that smelled incredibly sweet, but when it entered his mouth, it
tasted so bitter that he scowled at the hairdresser. “You look so beautiful.”
He said unable to get up from his chair.
Xiomara did the girly twirl for him, smiling wide. Sehun was going to miss
this, miss her the most. “Girls, he needs to get into his suit now.” she
ordered, fetching the covered suit from the wardrobe. “Shixun’s almost ready
and Faiion already crossed the barrier. You need to go welcome him! Chop-chop!”
The chop-chop brought back some memories which Sehun smiled for. He was then
suddenly jerked out of his seat and onto his foot. “Faiion’s almost here?”
which meant Kai’s almost here.
“Yes. And as much as I hate to say this, Shixun looks like a Prince. So I don’t
think you’re going to outshine him tonight.” She groaned, rolling her eyes.
Well, of course. Shixun had this beautiful brown mane of hair which Sehun used
to have before Xiomara chopped it off and made it blonde. “Why does that
irritate you?”
“Because he’s your personal favourite now,” she murmured, pouting a little.
Sehun grinned and pulled her into a hug.
“He’s my brother, Xi. But you will always be my personal favourite, my little
baby sis.”
Xiomara deliberately pressed her face into Sehun’s bare chest. Yes, he was
forced to sit there shirtless for hours. “I feel like I’m giving you away.” she
whispered into his chest.
Sehun almost choked on that. “Whoa, not so fast, chica.” He laughed it off.
Xiomara pulled back and beamed. “Amber and I are… well, we agreed to go out on
a date.”
“Really! Oh, Xi. I’m so happy for you.” he cupped her face and brushed his lips
on her forehead.
“Well, we can talk all about it later. But now, get dressed!” she shoved the
suit into Sehun’s chest. It felt heavy. “This is my birthday present for you.
For you and Shixun. Well, I already gave Shixun his.”
God no.
Sehun unzipped the cover when he was in the bathroom. He was not sure if he
were expecting some kind of overly gaudy and fancy green suit, but he was
rather surprised to see the black suit which had white embroidery on the
lapels. There was a black tie, a black shirt, a black vest, a pair of fit black
pants with silver cufflinks. The white embroidery ensured the suit was not too
simple, but it was not screaming ostentatious either. Sehun wondered what kind
of suit she had given Shixun to wear tonight. He cannot bother about clothes
right now. In a couple of hours, Grace will be here to get them.
All suited up, Sehun stepped out into the room and Xiomara’s jaw fell slacking
for a moment. “Oh, my god. Why wasn’t I born a gay guy?! Why could have you
been in my bed every day?!”
“Uh… because we’re cousins and that’s taboo.” Sehun turned to face the full-
length mirror and he was awestruck for a moment. Maybe he could admire himself
just for a moment. His hair was not sticking out in every angle for once. It
was not fancy, but his hair was honey-coloured now, still short, but neatly
styled.
“Birthday present part two.” Xiomara said as she slid the silver watch onto my
wrist and tightened it.
“Xi…”
“You look handsome, big brother.” She leaned in and planted a kiss into Sehun’s
cheek. They stood there for a moment, staring at their reflections in the
mirror. They looked like prom dates. In a few moments, this will all be gone.
Xiomara adjusted the cufflinks on Sehun’s wrist before she grinned wide at him.
“Sehun?” Jule knocked on the opened door and Sehun glanced to her. She looked
unbelievably exhausted, but she had managed to doll up as well and Sehun had to
give it to her—she was one of the most beautiful women Sehun had had the
pleasure of meeting in his life. Her black gown boasted her beautiful curves
and her wavy hair was pushed to one side. “They’re here. Your father’s here.”
Sehun’s heart dropped to his stomach. None of this mattered right now, but he
could not just turn a blind eye to it. It was supposed to matter. He was
meeting his father for the first time and he was not sure how he should act. He
had not bothered to have anything rehearsed—come on, the guy was plotting his
and his brother’s doom along with possibly everyone else’s. He no longer cared.
This was not the first birthday he did not care about anyway. But at least,
this was an important birthday.
Nodding his head, Sehun pulled his shiny black shoes on and followed Jule all
the way down to the foyer using the south-end staircase which was rarely used
by anyone. Just to avoid a spectacle, but he was going cause one anyway. By the
time he reached the foyer, the Minders cleared the path for him before Amber
walked up to him, clad in sharp pantsuit.
“Happy Birthday, master.” She bowed dramatically and Sehun smiled at her.
“Thank you, Amber.” She accompanied him as he pushed past the people. Sehun was
not sure if they were the guests or just people who just happened to be there.
He honestly did not care, but apparently they did because all of their eyes
were on him now. The Minders and Amber kept so close to him and Jule that he
felt suffocated for a moment as he hurried to the foyer.
The doors were opened and guests were walking in, clad in suits and evening
gowns. Sehun recognized a couple he had seen at the Welcome Party. “Sehun.” the
man and Sehun shook hands with him.
“Good evening, sir.”
“Remember me?”
“Of course. Clark, isn’t it?” he smiled a full smile and the man mirrored his
grin.
“Happy Birthday, son.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“Sehun.” Jule rasped beside him when the white limousine pulled up in the
driveway with a black SUV right behind it. Sehun arched an eyebrow at Jule.
“Likes making an entrance, huh?” he muttered under her breath.
“Not as much as your mother, I heard.” Jule whispered back and Sehun shrugged,
tipping his head.
“Touché.”
Sehun had nothing grand planned. It was like he was on auto-pilot mode now,
running on a vapours. He just wanted to get this over with. It was better this
way than to drag it on. Although a part of him still wished there was some
other way to end this. There really wasn’t and Gwenna knew that too.
A number of Minders climbed out of the vehicles first before Sehun spotted Dee
and Kai. Immediately, Sehun’s heart fluttered and he smiled. This was the best
birthday present. Just seeing Kai. Just seeing Kai smile at him.
Kai looked perfect as always—your typical Prince Charming type of perfect.
Sehun did not expect anything less. He had his hair gelled and swept back. He
wore a dark blue suit with a red necktie and the vest was so tight that the
buttons might pop out. But it was perfect. Kai was perfect. He had his one of
his hands stuck into the pocket of his pants while the other was pressed to the
small of Dee’s back as they walked into the foyer. Of course, to the world they
were a married couple. They stopped before Sehun and Dee leaned in for a very
formal embrace, brushing her lips on either sides of Sehun’s face. “Brother.”
She muttered.
“Dee.” Sehun muttered back.
She smiled when they pulled away from each other. Sehun turned to Kai who
smiled at him like he had seen an angel or he had found peace at the end of the
rope. Either way, Sehun just wanted to pounce on him and kiss the shit out of
him right there and then. Who the hell cared, right? Everything was going to
end anyway. And they both knew that.
But they both also believed that there was something to hope for. “Happy
Birthday, Sehun.” Kai said, loud and clear.
“Thank you.” Sehun found himself blushing. Maybe not all of him was on auto-
pilot. He was fucking in love with Kai.
There was a sudden nudge on his elbow and Sehun averted his gaze to the group
of Minders who entered and behind them was a tall man with sharp broad-
shoulders, impeccably dressed in a grey suit and his brown hair had grey
streaks, but neither his eyes nor his entire existence looked old. He looked
like a man who had killed thousands and carried a gaze which could warn people
off with just a glare. Sehun tried to not to gape at the handsome man, but hell
he looked intimidating. Not ugly scary, but he looked dashing good and strong
and powerful that he was… formidably daunting. He stepped forward and it took
Sehun all of his strength to not to step back. His heart was thumping in his
throat when the man pulled his hands out of the pockets of his pants.
“Sehun.” the man’s voice was deep and intimidating as well. Sehun nodded his
head and it felt a little childish. Then the handsome smile took form on the
man’s full lips. “Son. Finally!” He launched himself onto Sehun and pulled him
into a ferocious hug. Sehun went still as stone and he was just staring at Kai
over his father’s shoulder. Okay, maybe Sehun was not expecting this. Maybe he
was expecting for Faiion to strangle him like a pig or something. But not this.
He curled his arm under Faiion’s and hugged him back, closing eyes, drawing in
a deep breath. “Dad.” The word just spilled out on its own. That was definitely
not rehearsed.
Faiion pulled back and cupped Sehun’s face in his huge, firm hands. He was
grinning from ear to ear and Sehun had never pictured Faiion grinning to be
honest. He always pictured Faiion to be strangling somebody like a pig. “I’m
sorry I couldn’t find you sooner.” And he was apologizing! Jesus Christ, Sehun
had never misjudged someone so bad.
“It’s okay, dad.” He let out. His insides were a mess. His stomach was in knots
and bile burned up his throat.
His father withdrew his hands and bowed his head to Jule. “Now, shall we?”
Sehun tried to not to gape at his father like a caveman as he accompanied the
man to the ballroom. Kai was somewhere behind them and right now, Sehun was
more fascinated by his father. This was odd. He still wondered if his father
wanted to strangle him for choosing Gwenna’s side, but the man genuinely looked
happy, even proud!
“Dad!” Sehun’s own voice screeched just outside the ballroom, but it was not
his voice. It was Shixun’s. Xiomara was right. Shixun did look like a prince.
The noblest one at that. He was wearing a white suit which was identical to
Sehun’s suit, but only in white and the embroidery on the lapels was in black.
He did the suit more justice than Sehun. It was probably because Shixun had
rougher edges and a wilder hairstyle. But Shixun was probably uncomfortable in
that suit. Sehun had no idea how he let the people dress his hair, but there
must have been some sort of protective measures.
“Shixun!” his father howled flamboyantly as he took Shixun by the shoulders. He
did not hug him, but he looked unbelievably happy and relieved. “You are
grounded forever for leaving the citadel without my permission again!” the tone
was deliberately harsh, but Faiion was honestly a charming man. Sehun was
relieved as well. If a man like this had a feud with his own wife, then things
must have been awfully bad between them. Well, they were fighting over Sehun
and Shixun anyway. Sehun can fix it all. “Where is… she?” he asked Sehun.
“She won’t be joining us.”
“She never does.” He sighed. It was a good thing Gwenna never attended any
celebration.
Sehun peeped into the ballroom and frowned a little. There were so many people.
He was not sure how more people could even fit in there. He spotted Xi,
Jungkook, Mark, Yixing, Donghae and Ren all seated at a table. Jule ushered
Faiion into the ballroom along with a couple of his guards, but no more. Some
guests who stood outside to gawk at Faiion entered as well and Jule smiled at
Sehun before turning to Shixun. “Walk in. Your Flairs will concatenated. And
then, Sehun, your speech.” she said and Sehun nodded. Jule disappeared into the
ballroom and Sehun looked to his brother who did not seem one bit agitated.
“You ready?”
Shixun bowed his head and pursed his lips. “Grace will bring him, right?”
“I think so.”
“Okay.”
A part of Sehun wished Chanyeol was here, but again, it was better this way.
Just when he was about to walk in, he felt a hand press to his back before he
felt the minty breath on his cheek. “You look perfect.” Kai whispered as his
lips brushed Sehun’s cheek, but he quickly pulled away and smirked at him
before entering the ballroom. “You took a bath and combed your hair? Good
gracious!” He faked a gasp at Shixun who stuck his tongue out at him, scowling.
Sehun wanted to be that normal cheesy boyfriend who’d yell back ‘you’re
perfect’, but he was not Kai’s boyfriend, he supposed. And there was nothing
normal about any of this. Sehun noticed the white gloves on Shixun’s hands when
they finally went in.
The noisy chattering and laughter died all at once when they entered. All eyes
were on them now. On the podium, Philip Vance stood, smiling in their way.
Sehun climbed onto the podium first before Shixun, but they took their
positions before the minister together as rehearsed, facing their backs to the
guests. Under different circumstances, this would have seemed like a wedding.
At least there weren’t any vows.
Jule stood by her father, holding out the gold chains given by Grace in a
maroon tray. Jule said she had them rechecked to make sure they were
concatenation binds. Sehun’s heart hammered against his chest. Grace was going
to be here any moment now. All this peace was going to disappear. But he did
not flinch. It was so quiet that Sehun felt a little queasy. Amber was standing
right by the entrance. Sehun felt sick.
Minister Vance pulled a chain from the tray and slowly slipped it onto Sehun’s
neck. It felt light over the suit collar, but nothing else happened. He did not
feel any different. Was he expecting fireworks? Something magical? He didn’t
know. The Minister then turned to Shixun who was still pursing his lips.
Sehun’s blood ran cold as he waited impatiently. The gold chain was locked
around Shixun’s neck and they turned to face each other. Sehun held his hands
out and Shixun took them. Even through the gloves, he could feel the warmth of
Shixun’s palms.
“Repeat after me,” said the Minister, holding a book. Okay, so there were vows?
This was not on the rehearsal. Sehun tightened his hands around Shixun’s.
“Vinculum.”
“Vinculum.” They said in unison.
“Sanguinem.”
“Sanguinem.”
“Aequipondium.”
“Aequipondium.”
“Exordium.”
“Exordium.”
“Fratres in aeternum.”
“Fratres in aeternum.”
“Incircumscriptibilis.”
Sehun and Shixun drew in a sharp breath, staring into each other’s eyes. Sehun
could feel his blood burning in his veins. Shixun looked like he was in pain
too and his cheeks were flushed. Something was burning on the back of Sehun’s
neck, all the way down his spine. “Incircumscriptibilis.” That instant,
everything froze around them. It was just them and their own world. Sehun only
saw his brother and the bond they shared. He felt them. How strong they were.
And they were his strength. He just felt it and he did not how or why. He could
feel Shixun’s heartbeat and it was in sync with his own. This sudden gush of
power and strength that Sehun felt filled him from top to toe. His mind was
focused and Sehun realized this was the first time he was this concentrated and
in control. He was in control. Shixun was staring at him the same way Sehun was
staring at him and it took them a moment to revert to the actual world.
They released each other’s hands and Shixun pulled his glove off. Sehun was
already holding his hand out. Shixun did not hesitate even for a second when he
slid his palm over Sehun’s. A wide smile formed on Shixun’s lips and he looked
genuinely happy like he might be reaching the sky with his happiness. Sehun
retrieved his palm with no harm done. The ballroom was still silent and Sehun
smirked at his brother before he lifted his hand. Instantaneously, a lightning
struck the dark skies outside before a murderous thunder followed. Sehun could
feel it. He could feel the power in the tips of his fingers as he summoned the
rain outside.
“Congratulations,” said the Minister and Sehun could not help, but grin from
ear to ear. He threw himself onto Shixun and hugged the living daylights out of
him.
“Sehun, do it!” Shixun rasped into his ear and only then did Sehun realize what
he had completely forgotten. “Do it now!”
Sehun pulled back and stared at his brother who was frowning miserably.
Everyone burst into cheers and toasts, but Sehun continued to look at Shixun.
“I… I don’t know how to.” He muttered and Shixun blinked.
“Are you fucking kidding? Try, damn it!”
Sehun shook his head and desperately searched the crowd for Kai. Just when he
had spotted him, the windows of the ballroom exploded into shards of glasses
and an ear-piercing noise shattered every glass in the room, including the
crystals of the chandeliers. Sehun cupped his ears just as everyone else and
dropped to his knees when the screeching noise heightened. Seconds was all it
took for the place to fall into chaos. Sehun panted, gasping for air as he
looked to Shixun who was grimacing, covering his ears. Even when the unnatural
blaring screech had stopped, the screams continued as people scurried like
ants, trying to get out of there.
“Sehun!” Sehun heard Amber shout his name, but she and the other Minders were
blocked by the guests who scampered, bustling to escape.
“Shixun, are you okay?” Sehun inquired, straightening back up. His body was
paralyzed for a moment when he noticed the men climbing through the broken
windows and immediately recognized them as Grace’s men. Shixun rushed to his
side as they jumped off the podium.
Mark, Jungkook, Yixing, Donghae and Xiomara were already defending their house
as they turned on the intruders. This time round, Sehun was not going to stand
and watch any of them get hurt. The ballroom was still congested with people
and Sehun could hardly get past them. Grace’s men spilled in from every
entrance. “What do we do?” Shixun gasped beside him. Sehun closed his eyes for
a moment and focused. He focused on everything that nature could offer him
right now. The rain, the sand, the soil, the clouds. Everything. Then the wind.
He clenched his fists and his eyes flung open. Everything was grey around him,
but this time, he had control over it. He called on the wind and engulfed it
with wintry coldness before it gushed into the ballroom, carrying the soil, the
sand, the forage of orchard along with the rain. He focused on the intruders
and the wind surrounded every last one of them like a whirlpool, swallowing
them, slamming them against walls before throwing them back out the windows.
The entire ballroom drowned in the grime and muck the wind brought in like mini
tornados.
“Looks like you won’t listen without losing a fight.” The voice caught Sehun’s
attention at once and his eyes darted to the end of the ballroom where Grace
stood in the same white outfit, smirking at him. Beside her, Kris was hardly
standing with his eyes half closed. He looked like he was almost dead. His skin
looked grey and brittle. She shoved him to the corner of the room and Shixun
recklessly raced to him.
“Kris!” he yelped, crashing down to his knees before he broke into tears. His
hands were shaking as he held Kris’ face, probably for the first time and Kris’
eyes widened.
“Shixun.” He barely called out and pulled Shixun into his arms.
“I kept my end of the bargain. What of yours?” Grace diverted Sehun’s attention
again.
I can do this. You can do this, Sehun.
Sehun sucked in a deep breath. “I’m sorry you went through all that, mother,”
he said and Grace’s smile faltered as she looked surprised. “I will do right by
you.” He did not wait when he rounded the ballroom up, filling it with the
impenetrable dirt-stocked wind. He took Shixun’s advice and did not direct it
at Grace. Instead, he suffocated all of the ballroom with the wind endlessly
flowing through the windows. Within seconds, all that Sehun could see was brown
air in motion, circling around him. He heard Grace’s faint, angry shout, but
she could not get past the wind the shoved everything around Sehun back, acting
like a buffer. Sehun clenched his eyes tight and focused. The wind gushed and
swirled around him, deafening him. The memories that Gwenna had shown him
flashed before his eyes.
Alter Grace’s destiny. Alter her fate. Make her happy. I want her to have the
life she always wanted. I want her to be happy. I want everything to be okay.
Revert her childhood. Let her be loved, let her love, let her have everything
she coveted. A good, caring family. A loving husband. The life she always
wanted. A sister to love, friends to care for.
“Sehun!” Sehun’s eyes snapped open when he heard Kai’s voice. Something was
wrong. Sehun’s body trembled as his vision blurred. Black and grey began to
sink in from both sides. He quickly cleared the wind on his right and grabbed
Kai’s hand when he found him.
It was happening. Sehun could feel himself being ripped away from this world,
from this fate. He could just feel it. A hollow hole was punched into him as
the blackness seeped in. He desperately clung onto Kai’s neck and grabbed a
side of his face. He had no time to inspect Kai’s expression. He kissed him. He
kissed Kai’s mouth, his cheeks, his forehead, his eyes and then his lips again.
He was being pulled away by the darkness. Sehun gasped, he could no longer hear
Kai, but he still felt him. He kissed him one last night before surrendering to
the fate. I love you…
Black. Nothing. End.
===============================================================================
(A/N) Don't forget to read the epilogue! I've already posted that too!
 
***** Epilogue *****
“Sehun?”
How did it feel when you wake up from nothing but darkness? This was not
Dimension of Darkness, but he could not think of anything worse than being
ripped away from yourself, from your world. He did not know about others, but
it probably should not feel this… soft?
“Sehun.”
Something stirred within him. His mind was a blank slate for moments. There was
softness all around him and over him. Something warm, something fuzzy. Did he
do it? Did he… do it? Was he dead?
“You pig! Get up! You’re gonna make us late!”
Sehun’s eyes flew open. Okay. He was acting darkness and maybe a little bit of
fire. But he was looking directly at a pot of bloomed pink orchids. Exotic,
rare, beautiful. Behind it, there was a poster of a blonde woman. And beside it
was a desk with a heap of papers. He was wrapped in a quilt like a burrito as
the sun shone directly on his face. What the heck?
He dragged his eyes to the foot of the bed and saw himself standing there
impatiently with his arms folded over the chest, and scowling hard like he was
about to murder him. It was not himself. “Sh…” Sehun started and trailed off
when he realized he can speak.
So it didn’t work. The Destiny Manipulation bullcrap didn’t work.
“Dad’s gonna flip shit if you don’t come down in 5 minutes. He’s not gonna
drive us back! Why do you always do this?! How many times have I begged you to
not to sleep in on the day we’re going back?! Birthday leave’s over! We need to
be there before noon!” Shixun was on a rant as threw a temper tantrum by
shoving everything aside as he picked up a duffel bag from the chair by the
desk.Is this really happening or am I dreaming?
Sehun slowly sat up with his eyebrows furrowed together and the bridge of his
nose pinched. He looked around the room. He had never been in this room before.
“Sh—Shixun?” he called, scratching the back of his head.
“What?” his brother asked, annoyed as he stopped by the door.
“Where… are we?”
“Ha ha. Very funny. You can shower and piss back at FLAC. Can you just throw on
some pants and come down?!”
Sehun did not get any of this, but he did as Shixun said. Back at FLAC? He
threw on the pants he found on the desk and looked out the window. All that he
could see for as far as his vision would stretch was green. Was he at the
countryside? The room surely looked like it belonged to a country house. What
the fuck happened?
He hurried out of the room and found a spiral staircase. It was so narrow that
Sehun thought he might slip and fall. But he reached the bottom safe and sound.
His mind could not process anything. The last thing he recalled was kissing Kai
and not having a chance to tell him he loved him one last time and then
everything blacked out.
There was a mix of laughs and sighs, and Sehun followed it. He found himself at
the mouth of an old kitchen. It was a country house. Almost everything was in
wood. That was not the only thing that caught his attention. There were people
around the table in the cramped kitchen, laughing and talking. Shixun was at
the sink, swigging directly from the tap. Sehun considered rubbing his eyes,
but he could not move a muscle when he discerned the faces. Xiomara, Faiion,
Grace, Gwenna, Dillan, a man and a woman he could not recognize, Mark and
Donghae were all there. They were all… there. Sehun knew the sister with the
auburn hair was Grace and there was also a small boy that the exact eyes
Jungkook had. It was so discernible. Was that Jungkook?
He did not care. He crossed the room and curled his arms around Xiomara who was
seated. “Oh, my god. You’re extra nice today.” She giggled, hugging his arms.
She felt smaller than before and her hair was milky gold, not silver. She was
even wearing a short skirt!
“Gwenna?” Sehun let out breathlessly and the one with the black hair turned to
face him before she smiled at him. Sehun glanced to Grace who were filling a
cup with black coffee into the mug Faiion was holding.
“Why do you look like you’ve seen a ghost, Sehun?” Grace inquired in a soothing
tone.
“I think he’s hungover, mom.” Shixun snorted behind her and Sehun’s eyes
widened. Mom. Mom?
“You didn’t drink, did you?” she scowled, receiving the chaste kiss Faiion
pressed on her lips. Sehun’s heart leapt wildly. This is happening!
“No. No! No! Oh, my god!” he ran around the table to hug Mark and then Donghae
who both looked at him in despise. Donghae especially. He even shoved Sehun
off. Glad to know he’s still the same. But they looked different. All of them.
Good different. Brighter. Happier.
“Don’t look at him, Aunt Allis. He’s gone nutso. He even asked where we are.”
Shixun told the unfamiliar woman who looked almost as old as Grace and Gwenna,
but maybe a little younger. Allis! Dillan was there too! But she didn’t pay
Sehun any heed.
“I can take them back if you want, Faiion. I have to back in a while anyway.
Can’t leave my post for too long.” Dillan offered as Faiion drained the coffee,
shaking his head.
“I promised them to take them. It’s all right.” he rose to his feet and curled
his arm around Grace’s waist as he turned to the sink.
Sehun could hardly breathe. This was all real. He had a family! His mother,
father, everybody was here! Not everybody. Not everybody. Sehun’s throat
tightened and his chest felt heavy. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder. He
glanced to Gwenna who fixed a gentle smile on him. “Can I talk to you, Sehun?”
she turned to the unfamiliar man who stood tall by the refrigerator. “I’ll be
back, honey.”
They made their way to the front door. “Gwenna?” Sehun called in disbelief.
“Aunt Gwenna, if you may,” she smirked. “I know.”
“You know?” of course she knew! She can not only read Sehun’s mind, but she
must have also seen the futures of everyone if their fates were different. “Oh,
my god. Is this all real?”
“It is,” she stroked his arm. “You did it.”
“I can’t believe this. How? Why am I still here? I only changed Grace… my
mother’s destiny.”
“And by that, yours and everyone else’s because all of our destinies are linked
to her.” she still sounded the same. Calm and graceful.
“She… she married Faiion? You didn’t?”
“Good lord, no. I believe you have a lot to catch up with. Your mind and soul
still belong to your previous destiny. That is why you only remember as your
old self does. I’m sorry, but it will get easier.”
“Holy cow!” Sehun clasped his hands over his mouth. He actually did it! And he
made everyone’s life better. “Wait, so you… and Faiion… never…”
“I married my Champion, Xiomara’s father. It seems like you know her.”
“Yes! Yes! I do. I know all of you except your… husband and Allis,” he couldn’t
breathe. This was all too overwhelming. “But… not everyone is here. Dee? Your
daughter Deevana? Kris? Yixing... Kai?”
Gwenna smiled still. “I suppose there has to be sacrifices, Sehun.”
A part of Sehun fell apart. “Wh… what do I do now?”
“Live. Find out what your new destiny is.” She stroked Sehun’s arm again.
“Shall we?” Faiion showed up with Shixun following him. His brother stopped
directly before him and narrowed his eyes.
“I’d fry you if I didn’t need you to control my Flairs.” Shixun hissed
threateningly.
Okay, Sehun liked the other Shixun better. “I’m sure you would.” he spat back.
He was home.
 
 
===============================================================================
 
 
The wait was insufferable! Sehun had an entire life ahead of him to explore,
but he wanted to know everything right this instant. When his father pulled the
car up at the entrance of FLAC, Sehun spilled out of the car and gaped at the
old towers that stood high before him. He had not altered the entire universe.
Just their destinies. Including his own. Everything was still here. It was a
weekend, Sehun realized. No classes. Shixun was dragging a bag along, but Sehun
coursed into the academy like he belonged there. He did belong there now. He
recognized most of the students he sprinted past. He did not change any of
their destinies, so of course they’d be here! And so will Chanyeol! Oh, god,
Chanyeol will be here!
Sehun couldn’t stop. He kept running through the corridors like a madman until
he bumped into a hard chest and was forced to a stop. He looked up at Kris who
scowled down at him. “What’s the deal, Asherton?” Kris growled.
“I have no fucking idea what the hell is wrong with him!” Shixun cried,
catching up to him. “I think he’s finally losing it.”
“Told you not to lock yourself up in your room 24/7 and study. Warned you
you’ll go mad.” Kris scoffed, shoving past Sehun and threw his arm around
Shixun’s shoulders before yanking him into an obscene kiss. Sehun’s jaw dropped
as he gaped at them. He took it that Shixun could control his Flairs, which
meant they were concatenated. That would really explain the gold chains around
their necks. Sehun’s even had a cross on it and he was not even religious. Once
Kris was done with his impromptu make-out with Shixun, he sneered at Sehun.
“Are we putting on a show for you or something, cootie queen?”
Cootie queen? Kris was himself, Sehun realized. “I was wondering where my dorm
is.” Sehun mumbled, suddenly with all the excitement within him dying.
Kris cocked his eyebrow. “Just because I’m in the first year and you’re in the
last, it doesn’t mean you get to pull that shit with me, Asherton.”
“I’m serious… Wait, you’re first year? And I’m… senior?!”
“Told you. He’s cuckoo.” Shixun groaned. “Come on, Kris. Where’s Yixing?”
Maybe Sehun could ask someone else around and he did. The student gave him a
stink-eye as she pointed him in the direction of his dorm tower. It was the
same dorm! Sehun’s heart clamoured as he climbed up to his room. So Kris and
Yixing are here. That’s wonderful.
But Sehun could not feel the same excitement as before. He was still in his
nightshirt and he probably looked like a complete mess. He ran his hands
through his hair as he reached the room. He pushed it open and scanned the
room. It was empty. Well, there were two beds. Both made. And wardrobes and
desks. He entered the room and closed the door behind him before stepping into
the bathroom. His hair was brown again—he noticed that in the car itself. He
was never letting Xiomara near his precious hair again. He combed it with his
fingers and washed his face in the sink before drying it with the towel that
was hanging on the hook. There were toiletries on the shelf, but he was not
sure if they were his or his roommate? Was Kris his roommate? He honestly
didn’t care. He needed to go look for Chanyeol.
And Kai.
Maybe not.
Which will hurt him less?
He exited the bathroom and stood in the middle of the room, confused. He didn’t
know which one was his bed, although he was sure he would have taken the one
closer to the window. Speaking of which, he walked over to it and unlatched it
open. He twisted his hand and cupped it, and when he called the wind in, his
heart felt full again. He had full control of his Flairs.
Then he heard the door creak open. His stomach clenched and he turned around to
see a familiar figure standing there, only much, much younger. For a minute,
Sehun’s mind floated away along with most of his senses. What was he looking
at? Was it really…? Was it a ghost?
“Oh, great, Asherton. You’re back.” the same voice. Everything suddenly began
to hurt.
What the fuck did I do?!
Kai stepped in and walked straight to the bed away from the window and flopped
on it. He grabbed the pink box from the table between their beds and held it
out. Was that really Kai? It sounded like him and he sure as fuck looked like
him. But he's so much younger. Well, he did not look that different, Kai had
aged well. But still. “Got you a birthday present.” Kai said, jerking the pink
box in Sehun’s way.
Sehun dragged his feet forward lifelessly and accepted the box without taking
his eyes off Kai. Kai wore his hair differently. He had it shaved short at the
sides and back, but on the top, his hair hung long and wild. He was even
wearing a red t-shirt inside a black and red checked shirt. And red sneakers!
Oh, god, he was wearing sneakers! He fucking had an ear piercing. This could
not be Kai.
“Don’t just stare, Sehun. Open it.” he chimed, leaning back on his bed,
propping himself up on his elbows.
Sehun swallowed the lump in his throat and looked down to the box. There was
something scribbled in an ugly handwriting which Sehun guessed was Kai’s. It
was so messy that he could hardly read it.
Addressed to seDERPhun le cootie queen Asherton, from his greatest admirer,
Kai.
“Fuck me.” Sehun cursed under his breath only for himself to hear as he opened
the box. He found a pink, puffy brush. He brought his head up to stare at Kai
again, not because he didn’t understand what kind of gift it was, but because
he could not stop staring at the man… boy that was sitting before him with that
devil-could-care attitude. What the hell did he mess up?
“It’s a powder brush that’s used for butts. But I wanted to get it for your
buttface! How thoughtful, right?!” Kai exclaimed with a straight face as he
stood up. “Why do you smell like…” he leaned forward and sniffed Sehun. Sehun
flinched because he wanted to kiss Kai, but not this Kai. “A bitch?” he
scoffed, pulling away. “Better be down for lunch, Asherton. I won’t save you
food just because our parents are best friends. Maybe I will. And spit in it.”
“Kai,” he gasped at last and caught Kai’s arm. Kai glared at him, yanking his
arm back.
“What?”
“You’re my… roommate?” his voice would not go beyond a whisper.
Kai’s eyes narrowed and stared at Sehun for a while. It was horrible to think
that those eyes held no love for Sehun anymore. “No… I’m your dead grandmother.
What fucking acid are you on today, Sehun? And stop staring at me for fuck’s
sake!” he stopped by the door to glance back to Sehun. He just stood there,
surveying Sehun like he was looking for some kind of answers. When he didn’t
get any, he went away, slamming the door shut.
Bully. He was a bully even when he was young? Sehun dropped to sit on his bed,
crestfallen, heartbroken. This was not the plan. This was never the plan.
‘Something to hope for. If we’re soulmates, we’ll find our way.’
There Kai was. Sehun had fucked up big time. He had fucking fucked up his own
fucking destiny because there his destiny went, through the door, young,
fierce, aggressive, ruthless and completely out of love with Sehun.
                                        
                                      END
===============================================================================
                                        
(A/N) Thank you aaaalllll for reading, supporting, commenting and leaving
kudos! It's been such a blast and maybe this isn't the end ;) Buh-bye!!! Again,
thanks for commenting and voting! Also, check out my new fics! There's a gory
Vampire one, an assassin one and a fun fantasy one!
***** Original Work *****
Guys, I started on an original work (non-fanfiction).
I've posted five chapters. Do read it if you like :)
http://archiveofourown.org/works/7264291
***** Some of you asked... *****
I wrote an article on cyberbullies. It'll be great if you could read it and
leave some nice/professional comments :) Thank you so much. This article was a
little personal since I think I've been cyberbullied multiple times. 
http://www.myeducation.my/news/51/Don't-Know-If-You-Are-A-Cyberbully?-Let%27s-
Find-Out-In-5-steps/
 
Also, I'm writing a new Jongkai fic. Check it out if you're interested. Love
ya!
***** Sequel and new fic. *****
Do you guys really want a sequel to LN? I mean I could write one if y'all
really, really want one. Maybe this time it'll be in Kai's POV.
Also, posted a new sekai five-shots. It's BDSM & mpreg , so be warned. >> Final
Surrender <<
***** SEQUELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL *****
I AM EXCITED TO WRITE THIS BECAUSE
1) THERE'S GONNA BE AWKWARD SEKAI AND THEY'RE GONNA HATE AND LOVE EACH OTHER A
LOT
2) MOST OF THE STORY IS GOING TO TAKE PLACE IN FLAC
3) KRIS AND SHIXUN (TOXIC RELATIONSHIP)
4) BAD BOY KAI
5) LOVESICK SEHUN
6) BADASS VILLAIN
7) SEHUN AND KAI IN THE SAME ROOM
8) ADVENTURE
9) ROUGH SEKAI SMUT CAUSE Y'KNOW THEY JUST FUCKING HATE EACH OTHER'S GUTS
 
ENJOY! >>>>>> THREAD_OF_THE_FATES
Also follow me on my:
twitter
insta
askfm
Plus in case you guys wanna read Atrox,_The_Damned. (It's assassin/mafia!au)
and Sightless_Anathema (I am surprised I'm getting so many amazing feedback on
this one)
***** King's Lost Prince. *****
Guys, check out my new sekai fic if you want :D It's Evil King!Kai, Assassin/
Prince!Sehun, bondage and fantasy. >>> King's_Lost_Prince
***** Giving is Caring :* *****
LOL okay, after years of writing, I finally let myself get convinced by a
friend to start a fundraising campaign. As many of you already know, I'm
working on publishing a book. Whatever that you give might help me advance one
step towards that goal. Many of you asked me previously if there is a way you
could "leave donations" for what I put out there, and now you can! :D Just
follow this link → https://gogetfunding.com/hyperionova/ ← and donate as much
or as little as you want. I will appreciate it all. Thank you for reading my
works and supporting me.
Disclaimer: This is just one of the many ways for you to help a young writer
like me grow. I am not asking you to pay me for my fanfictions, as they remain
free to read on this platform.
***** Chapter 52 *****
Hey, guys! (Sorry, I'm using this story as an announcement platform). As most
of you already know, I have no retired from writing EXO fanfics (those who
don't know, I will upload my incomplete, ongoing fics on my site when they're
finished), but I am certainly not done with writing! I hope to find my way back
to EXO fanfics one day, but right now, I had to give in to my psychological
needs and take a break.
I'm here to let you guys know that I am finally publishing my first ever eBook,
which should be up on Kindle for purchase the first week of May. I really hope
you will all buy it (it's quite affordable), rate it, and leave reviews! You're
definitely going to enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it because
it's full of action, heartaches, and even some romance! It's kind of a medieval
fantasy, but set in a completely different world. Romance might bloom between a
bigoted and arrogant Prince and his bodyguard (duh, it's my favourite genre
after all).
The book cover was delivered today and I've posted the excerpt on my site.
(Click on the book cover for a pdf of the excerpt) → http://revvee.wixsite.com/
hyperionova/signella-excerpt#_=_
This excerpt hardly does justice to the amount of tension between Eadric and
Vance, but I hope you'll find it interesting.
The plot revolves around Vancelan Degraunce, a beast on the outside, but a
softie on the inside.
I really hope you will read the book once it's published! Have a good day!
***** RIVAUX REBOOT! *****
https://archiveofourown.org/works/10883283
Please drop_by_the_archive_and_comment to let the author know if you enjoyed
their work!