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smileysuh · 3 years

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Marks - Johnny & Jaehyun

🌙 staring. Johnny & Jaehyun x afab!Reader

🔮 synopsis. your soulmate sold your soul to not one but two demons.

tw/cw.: ex Haechan, threesome, some dirty talk, oral (f receiving), unprotected sex, choking, tiddie worship, multiple orgasms, fingering, etc… I pet names: (hers) princess, kitten.

👹 rating. 18+ explicit I wc. 14.2k

🍭 aus. demon au, soulmate au, poly, etc…

☀️ mlist + an. I need them biblically

“I really should be going.” Haechan sighs, running a hand through unruly, chocolate brown locks. They’ve been here since after dance practice, where Haechan had worked so hard that his muscles are bound to be sore tomorrow- but he’ll do it again. Because he’s only a trainee, and if he wants to make it in the idol world, he’ll have to work harder… like the two men in front of him.

They’re not idols, but Haechan wouldn’t be surprised to see their faces on a billboard somewhere for some new amazing boy group- they can’t be more than their mid to late twenties, which is well within idol range- But maybe they’re actually something better than idols- they’re producers. And they can make all of Haechan’s dreams come true…

Or so they’ve been saying. But they’ve been wanting to get to know him first. And that’s how Haechan has ended up in a beautiful restaurant that overlooks Seoul after a grueling day of trainee practice, with producers who refer to themselves as Jaehyun and Johnny, no last names given- no way for Haechan to look into them - but he’s seen their luxury sports cars, and even if they do something illegal, Haechan’s starting to think maybe it’s worth it. The clean road to fame seemed nice four years ago, but there’s still no end in sight. Every day is filled with work- and on top of that, his relationship with you is falling apart-

Yes, you’re probably at the apartment wondering where he is-

“Do you have someone waiting at home?” Jaehyun asks, drawing Haechan’s gaze as he rises from his chair. Jaehyun is the less talkative of the two, he’s more of a watcher. He sits and drinks while Johnny talks in animated forms with Haechan, making him laugh and chatting about the life he could have, asking all sorts of questions- Jaehyun makes Haechan a little uncomfortable, an ever constant reminder that this is business. They’re not friends at a restaurant getting dinner.

“Yeah.” Haechan briefly wonders if the man can read his mind, the question having been too spot on- but he quickly brushes it aside and chalks it up to paranoia and exhaustion.

“What’s her name?” Johnny’s the next to make an inquiry, and his soft smile makes Haechan lower his guard - a mistake, he’ll soon realize. Because if there’s one thing demons love more than anything they could possibly profit from during a demon deal, it’s a soul completely innocent of any dealings with their world. A soul corruptible and clean. And like any great predator, once a demon - if not two incredibly dominant ones - find something they want, nothing can stop them from obtaining it.

Haechan groans underneath you, his face buried in the pillow as you massage his back, working away the knots under his beautiful honey skin. Your soulmate has been exhausted for the past week, coming home very late, but you always wait up for him. Haechan’s a whimpery baby who can’t be bothered to roll his own back out with a medicine ball the chiropractor gave him, so you make sure to work out his muscles every night before he sleeps and do stretches with him.

Lately it’s been the only time you even see him, your schedules are so off.

After this, he’ll pass out with you for a while, a nap really, then sneak away to play video games for a couple of hours through discord with his friends in the other room. Then, when he’s tired again, he’ll come back to bed and be with you when you wake up. He likes to lazily cuddle you, before burying his face in the pillows and sleeping until dance practice while you go to work or school depending on the day. And when you get home he’ll be gone.

“Haechan?” You ask, working your thumb into the center of his palm. He groans a little, in response or due to the pressure- you’re not sure. “Do you still love me?”

He laughs a little, and a moment later, he rolls over, forcing you to lift your body to accommodate him until he’s flat under you again with your legs on either side of his hips. He grabs your hands and laces your fingers, pulling your wrist out. “You see this?”

He brings your joined hands up to your other wrist and drags his index finger across the words ‘sorry gorgeous’, from the day you’d met. He’d bumped into you on the street, nearly knocked you over, hands reaching out to steady you, and had said it: “Sorry Gorgeous.” the words that had been on your wrist since you’d turned sixteen and your soulmate mark had appeared, signifying that somewhere out there, you had a fated match, and his first words to you would be, surprise, “sorry gorgeous.”

“We’re soulmates.” He states firmly. “Come here.” He brings you down to him, peppering your face in kisses before his lips meet yours, hands slipping down to your waist.

He hadn’t really answered the question, but you suppose, as you’d first said to him - and is forever marked on his own wrist - ‘it’s fine.’ Although, as it had been that day, it really isn't.

“What?!” Haechan asks in shock, looking between Johnny and Jaehyun, who now seem to enclose him in the small booth. “You want… Y/N? But she’s not part of this-”

“You’re selling your soul to demons for fame Haechan. What did you think that would do to your soulmate? We’re offering an exchange. You keep your soul, all of it. And in return, we’ll take her.” Johnny smiles.

Haechan wonders how he’d ever found Johnny to be so charming. Had his smile been hiding a monster all along? Producers- as if! They’re Demons.

“How much fame do I get in return?”

Jaehyun and Johnny laugh. “How much do you want?”

Haechan sighs, then he leans back in his seat. “I’ve always liked being in a group, but being a soloist could be nice.”

“Less opportunity for variety and reality shows.” Jaehyun states.

“True. Do you need the details now?”

Johnny shakes his head. “No, we have all the time in the world, but you, on the other hand, only have your looks for so long.”

Haechan studies the beautiful men in front of him, eternally beautiful.

Eternally demonic.

“If you take Y/N, what will you do to her?” Haechan asks. He’s always been in love with fame more than he’s ever been in love with you, his real soulmate, but he still cares about you.

Johnny and Jaehyun exchange a look that doesn’t sit right in Haechan’s tummy, and it’s Johnny who answers smoothly, “nothing she doesn’t want.”

It sounds nefarious. Left purposefully ambiguous. Haechan thinks it’s better if maybe he doesn’t know what the demons have planned to do with you, he doesn’t want any guilt making his nights restless once he’s a famous idol, he’ll need his beauty sleep. “Give me a day and then I'll come back with details.” Haechan says.

“Perfect.” Johnny’s smile widens, “We’ll make you an idol Haechan, and all it’s going to cost you is your soulmate's soul.”

You’re waiting for Haechan, dressed in a cute little nightie to surprise him with something good after all the long hours he’s been working lately. Laying on the soft pillows, you’re becoming sleepy.

You let yourself close your eyes for a few minutes, then you decide to check your phone.

But when you sit up and reach for your bedside table to grab your phone, you find yourself not in your bedroom at all.

It’s a bedroom, it’s just not yours.

No, it’s substantially larger, sleeker and more modern, like a luxury hotel. There’s even a modern style indoor fire wall that reaches a man's mid thigh- he’s standing there, looking into the flames with his back to you, dressed in a black suit that shows off very wide shoulders.

“Told you she wasn’t sleeping.” A voice comes from your other side and you nearly jump in surprise, turning to face the new threat.

Your body relaxes for a moment at his beauty, only to recoil away from him- knowing there is something too perfect about him. His smirk widens, “Hey, princess.”

You gasp at a stinging on your wrist that comes immediately after his words. You tear your eyes from the handsome stranger and look at the mark on your skin that reads ‘sorry gorgeous’ the first words Haechan had ever spoken to you. Slowly, they begin to disappear, the beautiful loops you’d enjoyed tracing- giving way to unblemished skin-

Only for redness to blossom, forming two words, like Haechan’s had. But these are in a courier style, something sleek and sophisticated: ‘hey princess.’

“What-”

“That’s new,” the man in front of you reaches out for your arm and you pull it away, earning yourself a frown. He makes a motion with two fingers, and your wrist is lurched forward by some invisible grip, giving the beautiful man complete access to the mark on your skin.

“Don’t be scared.” Says a soft voice, then comes a feather light touch on your shoulder, and you turn to see the second man looming near the side of the bed, looking at your wrist.

Pain jolts on your other side, but it’s becoming familiar now, and not wholly bad- kind of like having a tooth pulled after a long time without. On your other side, in the same red as the first new mark, is it’s new twin, reading: ‘don't be scared’ in a controlled, slanted, scrawl.

“That is definitely new.”

Suddenly, the one who had called you princess lets you go and stands up. You feel like he’s mad at you- mad at the marks, and when he turns to look at you again, you cast your gaze down, not wanting to anger either of the men you’ve now found yourself with.

Something has gone horribly wrong- you can tell from the way that your skin has reacted to these two men. Your soulmate mark to Haechan had been black, as every soulmate mark always is- but these two are red.

As if this never before seen colour difference isn’t bad enough, you’ve never heard of a human ever having a soulmate mark change- fate is fate. Souls once tied are tied forever- right?

The beautiful man makes an aggravated sound and then, he disappears, right in front of your eyes. You tug your bottom lip between your teeth, fighting the urge to cry or scream- or react in any way to the craziness that keeps getting worse and worse-

“Sorry about him.” the man who’d told you not to be scared approaches you, “feel free to look around, this apartment has no exits,” he reaches out and pinches your chin in a way that’s almost loving- but the touch of the stranger has you pulling away. “You’re welcome to any of the clothes in the closet kitten.”

He waits for a moment, as if to see if you’ll react to his remark about the clothes?

Who does he think he is? Your new sugar daddy?

With a sigh, the man in front of you does the exact same thing his friend had done earlier: he disappears, and with that, you’re left in a stunned silence.

There was no way for you to tell what time it was, or how long had passed since the two men had disappeared. You’d taken the time to look around, being very cautious as you assessed the space and stole a hoodie and sweatpant combo from the massive closet.

The bedroom you’d awoken in is nice, but through your wanderings, you realize it’s one of two in the large, sleek, apartment you’ve now found yourself in. The rooms are comparable in size, but whereas the first bedroom had been quite bare in it’s decor, the second one has more personal items in it. There are books scattered here and there, and you decide that they are the most interesting thing- well, besides your two new captors.

You wonder whose room this is, the pretty man, or the stoic protector. Looking over the covers of books that range from revolutionary texts such as Marx and Debord to a few romance novels and Jane Austen’s, whoever’s room this is, has quite a collection.

You pick up an old looking book, eyes skimming the front. “Dante’s Inferno.” you read, tilting your head while opening the book to the page marker at half way. Not only is this book battered by dog ears and a coffee stain on the front cover’s left hand corner- but the pages are covered in notes written in messy scrawl-

You lift your wrist, assessing the new mark there: ‘don’t be scared’.

It’s written in the same hand as whoever had marked up Dante’s Inferno, and you settle on this room belonging to the taller man, which does make some sense, because you feel more comfortable here than in the other room.

The sleek modernity of it all had been fantastical at first, but it had felt hollow and lacking after you’d been left to your own devices inside of it.

You decide to stay in this room, having a brief war with yourself over whether or not it’s okay. You think maybe you could get in trouble for snooping, but every time your mind goes this direction, you look down at the words on your wrist ‘dont be scared’.

The man had felt sincere when he’d said it, and now that the phrase is etched into your skin, you realize you can draw strength from it.

Your eyes move to your other wrist, ‘hey princess’, and you think you’re more scared of the man whose first words had burned your flesh- but if he’d called you princess, he couldn’t be that bad… could he?

Your heart aches for Haechan, a brutal lurching that takes over your form every time your soulmate pops into your brain. Thinking of Haechan has always brought you comfort, but now that his mark is gone, now that ‘sorry gorgeous’ has been replaced- the image of his face in your mind's eye only brings pain.

You find your way to the bed, curling up on the foot of it, your fingers grasping at the silky comforter to find solace in the material, and before you know it, you’re falling asleep.

“Let’s take her back.”

“You’re being crazy.” Johnny says for what feels like the tenth time.

“We signed a deal for her soul, not a deal to be soulmates.” Jaehyun hisses, eyes shifting to the other demons in the luxury club. No one else is listening to the two men who sit at their usual booth, but it doesn’t stop Jaehyun from being cautious. “This has never happened before.”

“How can you be sure?” Johnny rolls his eyes, “this has never happened before? Really, Jaehyun? Have you been around for forever?”

“Been around long enough.” Jaehyun answers, swirling his drink and eying the way the amber liquid moves around the glass. “This is our third time making a deal for the soul of the soulmate instead of our client, the third girl I’ve had waking up in my bed with delicious fear in her eyes-”

“And every time their soulmate mark stays,” Johnny sighs, “I know.”

He thinks back to the other two girls who had been so carelessly thrown away by lovers who had no idea how lucky they were to be gifted a soulmate.

The first girl, Jenni, whose soul they’d been gifted had been broken by the ordeal, completely overtaken by grief. Jaehyun had tired of her soul quickly, and Johnny, demonic or not, wasn’t a big fan of watching innocents suffer. She hadn’t belonged with them, and he’d released her back to the world above. Johnny still kept tabs on on her, peeking in from the darkness of the corners of her rooms some night to clear nightmares from her busy brain, or sometimes following her late at night to make sure she is safe-

He’d liked Jenni.

The second soul they’d taken belonged to a girl named Hyuna. She had wanted revenge and the two demons were more than happy to give it to her. When Johnny and Jaehyun had shown up with the spitfire girl whose own soulmate had given her up to the fires of hell- well, she’d had a lot of anger to take out.

Johnny checked up on Hyuna sometimes too. She’d denounced the idea of soulmates, especially the archaic ways that soulmates were tethered in monogamy, and she’d picked up two new lovers who Johnny was actually quite fond of, from the glimpses he’d had of the throuple at bowling alleys and bars when he was bored enough to pop in.

When Jaehyun had first picked up the call of a would be idol- Johnny hadn’t been keen on the idea of taking the soulmate. After two, he’d realized soulmates were always more trouble than they were worth- and they’d ended up taking the soul of their second victim’s boyfriend regardless-

But then Johnny had seen you.

He’d seen the way you doted on Haechan, giving him everything and more.

And he’d wanted you.

Fuck, he’d wanted you more than he’d ever wanted anything in the whole world. So of course, he’d taken you, not thinking about the consequences- but to be fair, he never would have imagined this to happen.

Soulmates switching soulmates? To demons no less? And two of them?!

Johnny’s head is spinning, even as he tries to act calm.

“How come we don’t have marks though?” Jaehyun asks, cutting into Johnny’s deep thoughts.

Johnny looks at his wrist, tilting his head. Then he laughs. “Jae, we don’t have marks because she didn’t even speak to us.”

“That can’t be right.”

“I will bet you the blood of twenty virginal men that when we get back to the apartment, the first thing she says to you is going to appear on your arm.”

“Not the blood of twenty virginal men.” Jaehyun scoffs at the archaic offer. “How are you even going to find twenty virginal men? In this economy?”

Johnny laughs, “i can always find a video game store somewhere-”

Jaehyun rolls his eyes again, crossing his arms over his chest. “Maybe we should just leave her at the apartment. If we don't go see her for a month, she’ll just die-”

Johnny laughs even harder, then he stands, fixing his suit. “You can run away from this, as you do with everything, but if fate decided to give us a chance at a soulmate, I'm going to go give it a try.”

Jaehyun hates that what Johnny says makes sense.

Jaehyun’s never heard of demons finding soulmates- he’d be stupid not to see this through.

They arrive home to find their kitten no longer in Jae’s room. It’s not hard to guess where she is, and they find you sleeping on the foot of Johnny’s bed.

The two demons stand in the doorway for a few moments, just appreciating your form.

Jaehyun sometimes forgets how endearing humans can be- he can’t imagine going to sleep and being vulnerable for even one hour, let alone eight every night- or more!

Johnny moves first, approaching you and taking a seat next to your feet. The movement of him sitting on the bed wakes you up, and Jaehyun heads over to grab a drink from the vanity by the window that looks out at the dark, cold, hellscape that they exist in for much of their time.

“I’m sorry to wake you.” Johnny says, his voice soft. “You probably have a lot of questions- and we can get to those, but i’m going to tell you what happened first.”

Jaehyun takes a seat, watching the way you nod in response to Johnny’s words.

“Your soulmate, Haechan, sold your soul to us.”

Jaehyun looks away when you begin to cry, and he stays quiet while Johnny attempts to make you feel better. The taller demon grabs your hands and helps you off the bed, leading you to the common space, Jaehyun follows.

“Because we’re in hell-” Johnny says, which makes you cry harder, “there’s what we call dark space, and because we’re demons, we can create in dark space, watch.”

They go to stand in the middle of the living room, and for a moment, Johnny faces the window that overlooks wastelands. Then Johnny turns and looks at the kitchen, “what do you think about a loft type of room? Double floored space, larger windows behind us-”

Jaehyun laughs, sipping his drink. Johnny loves showing off his talent for design, not every demon can pull off dark space manipulation the way Johnny can- and their entire apartment was mind birthed from the tall, old demon.

With a flourish, Johnny extends the height of the ceilings, an entire second floor appearing over the kitchen and coming out just until it hangs over the living room.

“Can it have windows?”

“Hmm?” Johnny looks down at you and Jaehyun watches the way you move closer to Johnny, until you’re clinging to his arm, no longer crying.

“Windows that overlook the living room- and the other windows.” You motion to the ones behind you.

“Lots of windows.” Jaehyun says before he can help himself.

“It can have windows.” Johnny looks at the new second floor and he lifts his fingers, blocking in the room with white walls to match the surrounding apartment, and two massive windows on either side of the double door spaced opening. “With remote controlled blinds on the other side, you’ll have a lot of privacy.”

Jaehyun had assumed this room would be a temporary thing- after all, Jaehyun can’t help the way his eyes linger on your ass when you all ascend the stairs to the new ‘apartment within their apartment’ that will house you.

You and Johnny head inside, but Jaehyun stops, looking out at the new view from the second story of their apartment. The wasteland looks particularly moody today, and with a wave of his fingers, Jaehyun creates a glass walkway extending the perimeter of the space, with a small enclosed deck area outside the doors. He thinks maybe you could have a chair and read there in the mornings while he works out in the living room below-

“Did you get a mark?” Jaehyun turns to look at Johnny, the crazy soulmate principal resurfacing with the unwanted squishy thoughts that had weaseled their way into his mind.

Johnny reaches down and undoes his cufflink, rolling up the white sleeve of his dress shirt to show a bare arm. He repeats the process on the other side, also coming up bare.

Johnny is the first you to react, laughing, “the plot thickens… but to be fair, ‘can there be windows’ is not my idea of a wonderful mark to have on me for the rest of my existence- you try.”

“No.” Jaehyun steps backwards, back onto the new patio that overlooks his living room.

This is what he was avoiding.

“It’s okay, I won’t talk to him.”

Your soft voice draws Jaehyun’s eyes to you, but you are looking at Johnny. The tall demon turns with you, assessing the bare, new space, “how big of a bed do you want?”

Jaehyun laughs. Johnny is a designer, he could be at this for hours. The less design inclined of the two men is eager to get out of the apartment.

It might be a whole new room- and deck - bigger, but it feels awfully small with you in it, and Jae needs to talk to his friend Taeil; the oldest demon he knows.

Yeah. Taeil will know what to do.

“You went to Taeil instead of me?!” Johnny asks, eyes bulging.

“Shh!” Jaehyun immediately reminds him, casting a glance at the door to Johnny’s room.

“She’s asleep.” Johnny says, but lowers his voice, sighing. “Well? What did he say?”

“He said it looks like we’re shit out of luck, and he has no Hyung knowledge for us when it comes to demons getting soulmates.” Jaehyun sighs, heading over to the windows to pour himself a drink.

“That’s not surprising.” Johnny smirks, playing with the book in his hands from where he watches Jaehyun on his bed.

Demon’s don’t need sleep, and many of your dreaming hours, Johnny spends reading and improving his mind. Other demons, like Jaehyun, go out looking for social interaction to spend their copious amounts of time.

“You should have talked to Yuta.” Johnny says.

“I did.”

“And?”

“He said ‘just because i have some fucked up soulmate who is reincarnated every thirtyish years and dies a horrible death at the age of twenty five doesn’t mean i’m an expert on soulmates’, and to be fair, he did get his soulmate when he was still human.”

“Yuta’s just a big ol’ mess huh?” Johnny chuckles.

Yuta’s soulmate is what makes him truly psychotic- Johnny can’t imagine being fated to someone that dies prematurely, he can’t imagine being fated at all- and his eyes go down to his bare arm.

Johnny sighs. “I really thought when she spoke, we’d get marks.”

Jaehyun is quiet by the window. His head tips down and he swirls his drink.

“Maybe we don’t have marks because we’re not her soulmates.” He says finally.

Johnny scoffs, “not possible. She has the marks, they go both ways.”

“Says who?” Jaehyun turns to look at his friends, mischief in his eyes, a smile on his lips while he sips his drink.

“I don’t even want to talk to you if you’re going to be like this.” Johnny opens his book again, dissatisfied- “and besides!” he begins to fight again, “would that mean that we’re both fated to her, our words on her arms, as in we’re the ones who are fucked, or would it mean she’s the one who belongs to us- quite literally, the contract is here somewhere-”

“It’s in my room.” Jaehyun says absentmindedly.

“What’s it doing there?”

“I may have snatched it from your briefcase earlier.” Jaehyun answers, done with his drink and now heading to the door.

“Admit it. You like her.”

“Says the guy that built an entire extra room in our apartment for her.”

You wake up to the smell of food, and your first reaction is to smile, wondering what Haechan is cooking-

Then you sit up, the unfamiliarity of the situation washing over you. Because Haechan doesn’t really cook, and this isn’t even your bed- well, you suppose it is now- and you ball your hands in the white fabric of the duvet.

Johnny had done a nice job designing the room with you. It had actually been kind of fun to create the space with the demon? He’d snapped his fingers and made all sorts of interesting items and things appear out of thin air- when you’d asked him where they came from, he’d told you not to think about it too much. He’d told you there was no price tag…

And that’s how you’d ended up with a literal working fountain in the corner of your room. It’s peacefully puttering away, and you look at it, sighing at the situation you’ve found yourself in.

You get up, heading to the closet that Johnny had filled for you with the snap of his fingers. You hadn’t really checked out the items he’d snapped into existence- being too overwhelmed by everything that all you’d really been able to do was collapse onto the bed and sleep after Johnny had perfected the room.

As you look through the clothes, you realize how much of an eye for fashion Johnny has. The clothes range in aesthetics, which you’re thankful for, and you settle on some sweatpants and a hoodie that swallow your body.

You make it to your door and peak out, hit with the smell of cooking. Tiptoeing down the stairs that lead to your new second level room, you’re careful to keep your eyes on the kitchen as soon as you can, focusing in on Johnny by the stove.

He has his back to you, his black shirt stretching over his broad shoulders and making you swallow thickly.

“Hungry?” his voice fills the dead silence of the room. There are no birds chirping outside, no cars- it’s just you and the demon who apparently has super hearing.

“Yes, sir.”

Johnny turns to look at you, an eyebrow cocked. “Sir?”

“I mean- you- Haechan- you own my soul now right?” You stumble over your words, “shouldn’t I- shouldn’t I give you a title of respect?”

Johnny tilts his head, assessing you, then he breaks into a smile. “You’re cute. Come eat.”

He turns and opens a cupboard, pulling a plate out that he sets next to the pan of whatever he’s been cooking. While you move into the kitchen, you walk around the island table one way while Johnny avoids you by going around the other, taking a seat.

He’s made pancakes, and you can’t help but smile.

Haechan never really did cute things like this for you. He was your soulmate sure- but that was just a given.

It’s odd to be receiving these little scraps of affectionate acts of service from a demon, but maybe you don’t mind so much.

You serve yourself food and turn to look at Johnny, who pulls the chair out next to him, his eyes fixed on a book that had been sitting on the counter.

Because Johnny seems to be reading, you keep your mouth shut, accepting the seat next to him.

You don’t immediately eat, instead, licking your lips and turning to Johnny.

“What?” he asks, still reading.

“Syrup?”

A snap of the fingers has the tasty condiment appearing next to your left hand.

“Are you going to eat? Sir?” you ask, still feeling the need to tack the respectful term onto the end of your sentence.

“Demons don’t need to eat.”

“But your kitchen-”

“We cook sometimes, we just don’t need to.” Johnny clarifies, “and if you opened the fridge you’d see it only has beer in it.”

You can’t help but laugh slightly at his words, amused by the nonchalant demon, who continues to read a book that you now see is a romance.

“What are you reading?” you question next, biting at your lower lip, knowing you might be getting yourself into hot water-

Johnny looks at the cover of his book then sighs, “are you judging my taste in books?”

“No.” You immediately respond, “sir.” but by the way a grin works its way onto your face- you know you’re not fooling anyone.

“Do i need to get you a book?” Johnny sighs, running a hand through his hair and turning in his seat to look at you, “something tells me that staring at your water fountain isn’t going to help pass the day.”

You smile, telling him the title of your favourite book, which he snaps onto the table a moment later. “And- if you have time, you could- you could get rid of the water fountain.” you say, feeling your skin heat.

“Maybe I’ll just put it in my room. Or I could replace it with a reading chair for you.”

“That would be nice.” you admit.

Johnny stands up and you watch him. “Eat.” he reminds you, “I have a soul to go make a bid for- Jae’s out, but he should be around. You know there’s no way out of here-” you nod diligently and Johnny cracks into a grin, “when I’m home, i could take you shopping if you’d like.”

“Shopping?”

“Yeah, we could actually go to a store and you could try things on. Looks like you didn’t like much in the wardrobe.” Johnny picks at your hoodie.

“I like this.” you insist, but there is something screaming inside of you to dress up for him- and for Jaehyun, if you’re being honest with yourself. You have eyes. And you have two soulmate marks on your arms that are, apparently, tying you to these men-

Your last soulmate- well, he sold you to these two demons-

You have a lot of conflicting emotions, and, surprisingly, sadness isn’t really one of them. Being with Haechan had always felt right because the fates had said so, not because there was anything specific about your relationship that made you happy- in fact, as happy as Haechan did make you when he was around, you’d always found yourself to be lonely.

There was never anyone to make you breakfast, let alone sit down and eat it with you- well, read it with you.

Haechan never took you shopping for clothes.

Never really helped decorate your apartment and make it yours.

Never listened to your design opinions and made you laugh while simultaneously being shocked at his intelligence and knowledge of seemingly all things-

Maybe you just like Johnny.

Maybe it’s you falling, yet again, for the fate on your arm- and the thought brings a sour taste to your mouth.

“But- I would like to go shopping.” you tell him.

Johnny grins, “perfect, it’s a date.”

And then he’s gone, snapping out of existence, and you’re left already missing him.

Jaehyun assessed the man in front of him, looking him top from bottom. Many people have made deals with Jaehyun for fame, but it’s always easiest to grant their wishes when they’re already attractive.

Johnny’s been known to take cute girls out clothing shopping, acting as a sugar daddy of sorts, before presenting the would be idol to Taeyong, their most powerful demon friend who runs the entire industry from the shadows. There’s not a need for these behaviours, and Jaehyun’s not going to bother giving fashion advice to the guy who is leaning back against the kitchen table with his arms over his chest.

At least the guy is attractive, the clothes don’t matter so much. “What’s your name again?” Jaehyun says as he pops a contract into existence, the base already written, with a few blank spaces left for specifications.

“Jeno- Lee Jeno.”

“And what are you willing to give me for fame?” Jaehyun asks, his eyes going down to Jeno’s arms to see if he had any soulmate tattoos.

His arms are bare, not a good sign… for Jeno.

“Erm-” Jeno’s eyes quickly move to the man next to him, and Haechan pushes off the table, trying to make himself look bigger as he addresses the demon in the room.

“We can find a soul for you to take.” Haechan says, and Jaehyun finds the confidence in his voice amusing.

Cracking a smile, the demon shakes his head, “that’s not how this works.”

“But you took Y/N.” Haechan states, and Jaehyun’s smirk twists into a scowl. He’s not used to being talked back to, and he’s not entirely happy about the deal he and Johnny had made with Haechan- which Jaehyun thinks might be more trouble than it’s worth- although he’ll never let Haechan know that.

“She was your soulmate, her soul was yours to hand over. Jeno, unfortunately, only has his own, and I'm not sure I’m interested.”

“You’re not sure if you’re interested?” Haechan scoffs, “look at him!”

“Haechan-” Jeno is looking at his friend and Jaehyun can taste his panic in the air, can see his pulse racing.

“Did your friend tell you that you could sell someone else's soul for fame?” Jaehyun tuts, turning his gaze to Haechan, “I don’t like to have my time wasted.”

“Your time’s not being wasted.” Haechan insists, “he wants to be famous.”

“But I don’t want to sell my soul, Haechan!” Jeno whispers angrily and Jaehyun loves it, a smile appearing on his face while he watches the two friends begin to but heads.

“He’s not going to take your soul now, though! Or you wouldn’t be famous!” Haechan declares, a moment of genius that actually takes Jaehyun back slightly. He’s right, and when both men look to Jaehyun, the demon nods.

“So how much- how much time would i have before you- took my soul? And what would happen after?” Jeno asks quietly.

Jaehyun hadn’t been interested in his soul before, but now that he’s shown some pushback, Jaehyun is determined to have Lee Jeno sign a contract.

“For fame? I’ll let you live out your prime as an idol, you can get married, have a kid, spend two years in the military for all i care- and when you’re forty, i’ll come collect. I’ll eat your soul and it will add to my power. You won’t have to be judged when you die, won’t have to risk going to hell to be tortured for eternity- it will simply be over.”

“Do people actually get tortured for eternity?” Jeno whispers, eyes wide.

“Sign the contract and you’ll never have to know. It’s better not to know.” Jaehyun tells him, eyes scanning the contract he’s just worked up to make sure it’s all correct, then he holds it out to Jeno.

“Forty is too early.” Haechan’s voice draws Jaehyun’s eyes, and it makes Jeno stop mid reach for the piece of paper in the demon’s hand.

“Some people live to be a hundred now, and you’re going to take his soul at forty? Fifty sounds more fair.” Haechan says, crossing his arms over his chest.

“I didn’t realize making deals with demons was about fairness.” Jaehyun says lowly, and just as he’s about to push back more- he feels something.

Jaehyun and Johnny’s apartment is in dark space, a realm that exists for demon’s to play in, and a demon’s home is deeply tied to the demon who created it. Or in this case, the two demons. If there’s a disturbance in Jaehyun’s dark space, he can feel it, and the tingle that runs up the back of his spine is a familiar one.

Certain demons leave what Jaehyun likes to think of as fingerprints when they phase between dark space and the real world. When Johnny pops into the apartment, Jaehyun gets hit with the smell of forest and an after scent of something like burnt herbs- Jaehyun’s never been able to put his finger on it- but the tingle on the back of his neck belongs to only one demon.

Yuta Nakamoto.

The dark space is vast, incredibly so, and most demons keep the exact figurative locations of their homes secret. Jaehyun can’t just pop into anyone’s dark space home, and neither can Yuta- but he can pop into Jaehyun’s, because he has permission to do so.

Permission, Jaehyun suddenly realizes, with a pang in his chest, that he needs to resend immediately. Because he knows Johnny’s not at the apartment, he’d had a meeting with a ceo who had sold his soul years ago- but that’s not what matters, what matters, is that Jaehyun knows you’re in the apartment alone.

And suddenly, he’s not as confident about Yuta’s friendship.

Yuta is a true enigma of a demon- he’s unpredictable and cruel, giving affection only to a select few- and Jaehyun knows he and Johnny aren’t as high on Yuta’s list as some of their other demon friends-

If it was Mark’s home, Jaehyun would trust Yuta to be nice to a girl he found there- but Jaehyun’s not sure what he’ll do with you.

“You know what,” Jaehyun draws the contract back to his chest, quickly changing it, “you’re right,” the words taste horrible on his tongue, but he’s eager to escape, “fifty years is more fair.”

Jeno accepts the new contract, and Jaehyun holds out a pen.

“I just-” Jeno sighs.

Anger surges through Jaehyun’s body. “I told you, I don’t like to have my fucking time wasted.” he growls, eyes turning to Haechan, who’d called him here with the promise of a soul.

“It’s not being wasted.” Jeno assures Jaehyun, visibly breaking. He swallows thickly, and his pen glides over the page.

As soon as his signature is complete, Jaehyun snaps it out of existence and onto his work desk back home.

“So when do i get famous?” Jeno asks.

“In two to three business weeks.” Jaehyun states, and then he allows the darkness of demonhood to engulf him, pulling him back into the world - into the room - where he would be in complete control- only, he wasn’t.

Jaehyun appears in the middle of the living room, eyes looking around, searching for you or Yuta. Jaehyun’s skin tingles when he exerts some more power, quickly pin pointing that both you and Yuta are in Johnny’s bedroom.

Jaehyun is at the door in an instant, looking in and assessing.

You’re sitting on the bed, leaning back against the headboard, your legs tucked up, arms wrapped around yourself. And Yuta is at the foot of the mattress.

“There he is.” Yuta says, turning to flash a demonic grin at Jaehyun. “Told you he’d show.”

Jaehyun’s confused by his words, eyes moving to you again. You don’t look to be hurt- but to be fair, Yuta has only been here a couple of minutes based on when Jaehyun felt Yuta’s telltale dark space fingerprint enter the apartment.

“What are you doing here?” Jaehyun asks, his voice low, a warning.

“Don’t get your panties in a twist.” Yuta holds his hands up, “i came to take a look at the girl with two red soulmate marks on her arm.”

“You should have made sure Johnny or I was here before you dropped in.” Jaehyun states.

Yuta shrugs, then he looks at you, and Jaehyun’s hand forms a fist at his side.

“I just wanted to compare marks.” Yuta says, holding out his arm to show you.

Jaehyun’s seen the mark many times. It’s often half hidden by a dragon tattoo that follows the dark line that curves around Yuta’s arm. “These dark lines- back when i was human, we didn’t have words written on skin, we had line tethers.” Yuta explains, and Jaehyun relaxes slightly by how gentle his tone is. “Most people had them around their fingers,” Yuta holds one up, “but me? My soulmate- we were more. We had a band wrapped around our wrists.” Yuta demonstrates the inch thickness the band had been, “but when she was torn away from me, the band snapped, the mark wrapping around my arm.”

“That’s horrible.” You say, and Jaehyun looks at you. Having sympathy for a demon- and Yuta at that- it’s kind of a shock. “I’m sorry that happened to you.”

“Me too.” Yuta says, eyes still on his mark. “Sometimes, fate has something specific in plan for people. For me? They want me to suffer- but I won’t get into that.” Jaehyun’s glad he doesn’t, because the tale is truly tragic. “You can’t fight fate. It always wins.”

Yuta stands suddenly, sighing, “Mark’s looking for me. I should go.”

Mark’s a frequent visitor of Yuta’s dark space home, which he’s modelled like a palace to fit his aesthetic, and like Yuta, Mark often drops in unannounced.

If Johnny's arrival is woodsy smells, and Yuta’s is a tingle, Mark’s entrances into dark space always taste like pancakes, and Jaehyun used to hate it at first.

Yuta disappears from the room, and suddenly, the space between you and Jaehyun feels more obvious. He looks at you, licking his lips, he’s about to apologize for leaving - for going and doing his job - for leaving you alone with the possibility of unannounced intruders- but you speak first.

“Thank you.”

He’s confused- and before he can ask why you’re thanking him, there’s a feeling of heat against his inner wrist- and when he looks down, the words “thank you” are written across his skin in pretty red.

Jaehyun ignores the mark, putting his hands behind his back so you can’t see it. “Thank you for what?” he asks.

“When Yuta arrived, i was here all alone, and he told me he’s a friend of yours and not to worry because you’d be popping in ‘at any moment’ and i didn’t really believe him, but then you showed up.”

“He wasn’t mean was he? Did he say anything else?” Jaehyun asks, trying to hide the anxiety bubbling in his chest.

You shake your head.

“Johnny and I can sense when other demons enter our apartment.” Jaehyun explains to you, “i should have been here-”

“You had work- didn’t you?”

“Yeah.”

“So- so don’t apologize.” Jaehyun watches the way you lean forward, resting your cheek on your knee, which is still pulled to your chest. He can see the sincerity in your eyes.

Jaehyun’s not sure what to say next, and now that he’s not in aggressive ‘get Yuta out of my fucking apartment’ mode, he’s realizing that jealousy is bubbling in his chest the longer he looks at you on Johnny’s bed.

You’d come to this room on the first day too, leaving Jaehyun’s bed where they’d initially brought you- “why are you here and not in your own room?” Jaehyun asks.

He can see the way his question affects you. You wrap your arms tighter around your body, looking smaller, and Jaehyun feels sorry that he’s just said something that came out aggressive- it wasn’t aggression directed at you, but at the notion that you prefer Johnny.

“I like it here.” You respond. “The windows are nice.”

Johnny’s room, much like Jaehyun’s, has windows that overlook the vast, empty dark space.

“It feels like I'm on the moon.” You turn and look out, and when Jaehyun follows your gaze, he supposes you’re right. Your room had been put over the kitchen, without a real view of it’s own, and Jaehyun feels bad about that now.

“Did Yuta leave?” Comes Johnny’s voice just as the smell of cedar washes over Jaehyun’s senses, and he turns to see his companion demon in the doorway.

“Just a minute ago.”

Johnny’s eyes move around the room. “I would have come back sooner, but I felt that you’d popped in to deal with Yuta. Figured you’d take care of it. Did he want anything?”

“He just wanted to look at her marks for himself.” Jaehyun explains, heading towards the window so he can look out.

“I see.” Johnny moves through the room, going over to the table where he keeps all of his contracts.

“What did the CEO have to say?” Jaehyun asks his friend.

“He wanted one more year to live.” Johnny explains, “said it was his daughter’s wedding or something.”

“And? You gave it to him?” Jaehyun asks in shock. Johnny’s not usually one to alter contracts.

“He’s recently gotten in with the underground gun trade, with each day- the amount of sin on him grows. I can wait another year if it means his soul is darker. More power for me.”

“Souls get darker?” Your voice draws Jaehyun’s eyes.

Johnny turns, leaning back against his table, looking at you with a smile, “with every good and bad deed, your soul changes tint. People who do a lot of bad, have black souls, people who are good, have light. When we make contracts, usually people are looking for fame, for money, or sometimes they want the love of someone who doesn’t want them- we make these things happen, but generally people willing to sell their souls are the corruptible types, they naturally have darker souls. The darker the soul, the more power we gain when we consume it.”

“You consume souls?”

“When I'm hungry and in need of a kick.” Johnny says nonchalantly, and Jaehyun watches the way you cower slightly, obviously not appreciating the demonic humour.

“Are you going to consume my soul?” you ask.

“It wouldn’t be worth it.” Jaehyun states factually. “Your soul is so light- we wouldn’t gain any power.”

“So why did you give Haechan everything he ever wanted and take me if I'm no use to you? What would be the point-”

“A person who willingly gives up their soulmate doesn’t deserve to have one.” Johnny interrupts you, and Jaehyun knows this is a deep rooted thing in the man who’s come to be his closest companion in the world. Johnny has an adoration for uplifting the downtrodden. He doesn’t like to see good people be hurt- but he absolutely adores seeing the bad ones get their comeuppance.

“So you- so you saved me?” You cock your head.

“I’d like to think so.” Johnny responds. “Most demons don’t do what we do. Most soulmates don’t call on demons for needs to be met because they are supposed to have everything they need in their partner. You’re only the third soul we’ve been offered in loo of the original contract holder.”

Jaehyun can’t help but notice the way your eyes move to him. “What happened to the other two?”

“The first one was broken by the whole thing.” It’s Johnny who answers, and Jaehyun keeps his mouth firmly shut. “Her name was Jenni. We took care of her for a while, and once she was ready, we let her go.”

“And the second wanted revenge.” Jaehyun says. “So we gave it to her.”

He watches you carefully, looking for any emotion that could tip him off as to how you’re reacting to this whole thing. You’ve been awfully- docile, for lack of a better word.

Jennie had been overtaken by grief, and the beautiful woman had fallen into Jaehyun’s arms just as he’d imagined she would when he agreed to take her soul from the undeserving mate the fates had mistakenly tied her too.

Hyuna had been mad when she’d found out what had happened. She’d thrown things around, breaking everything in the apartment, and Johnny had allowed her to, knowing everything was replaceable.

But you- you’ve been walking around the apartment, finding your way to nap on Johnny’s bed- getting settled- it’s very different, and Jaehyun doesn’t know what to make of it.

“What’s the point of selling your soulmates soul if the demons who took her are just going to come back and kill you?” You cock your head and Jaehyun enjoys the way you use your brain, asking astute questions that have him wanting to tell you all the details about his demonic way of life.

“We can’t be the ones to harm him. Hyuna did all the work. We were just there.” Johnny explains. “We gave pointers.”

“This is a lot to take in.” You admit.

“You should get some rest.” Jaehyun states, shocking himself at the way he feels the need to protect you- to help you make good choices for your well being.

“I should.”

You begin to sit up and Johnny holds up a hand, “you can sleep here. We’ll be in the living room.”

“Are you sure? This is your bed-”

“And it’s never actually been used for sleeping,” Johnny heads towards the door to leave the room, turning to flash you a wink that has Jae sighing, “so break it in for me, will you?”

The tall demon stares down at the mark on Jaehyun’s arm. The words “thank you” seem to be taunting him, and he doesn’t even realize he’s all but frozen in place until Jaehyun is pulling down the sleeve of his shirt to once again hide the new mark.

The mark that solidifies him as your soulmate.

“So what does it mean?”

“Why do you always think I have the answers?” Johnny sighs, his skin flushing with demonic rage at the notion that Jaehyun has a mark while his own arm remains bare. The tall demon heads over to collapse on the chaise lounge in front of Jaehyun’s fireplace, “what did Y/N say when it appeared?”

“I didn’t show her.” Jaehyun turns his back to Johnny, who sits up, eager to get a look at his friend, eager to figure this out-

“Why wouldn’t you show her?”

“Because this whole thing is a mess.” Jaehyun says. “She has a mark from both of us, but i’m the only one of us with a matching mark-”

“I guess i’m just not her soulmate like i thought i was.” The words feel bitter on Johnny’s tongue, and he turns to look out the window at the timeless hellscape, hoping Jaehyun won’t see him scowling.

He’d thought maybe- maybe the universe had given him a second chance. A chance to have something of his own to take care of. A little spark of humanity- a girl to save. And he had saved you- only to find out that you’re meant for Jaehyun.

“You could still be.” Jaehyun says, quieting Johnny’s aggravated mind. “Marks don’t make sense. Think about Yuta’s. It changes- how do you explain that?”

“The same way I explain a human loosing her soulmate and being given two red marks instead.” Johnny sighs, letting his head loll back so he can stare at the ceiling. “I don’t.”

Johnny feels you approaching before there’s a knock at Jaehyun’s door. He and his friend exchange a glance, then Jaehyun walks over, opening the door to look at you.

“Can I- can I come in?” you ask, peeping past Jaehyun and locking eyes with Johnny.

Jaehyun moves out of the way and you awkwardly step into the room. “Can’t sleep?” Johnny questions.

“It’s kind of hard to sleep when you don’t really know what time it is- it’s not like it gets dark out there.” You motion towards the windows and Johnny laughs.

“Fair. It’s two AM.” He informs you, checking his watch.

“This won’t take long.” You promise, eyes moving to Jaehyun as he walks over to go sit on the foot of his bed.

Both demons have their full attention on you.

“I think- I think I need to see Haechan.” You say.

Johnny’s eyes move to Jaehyun, who exchanges a look with him that says ‘i don’t know about this’, and Johnny is quick to stand up. “What for?” he can’t help the concern on his voice- he really has not pegged you as a killer and he’s about to have the shock of his entire life if you say you want to go kill your ex as Hyuna did-

“Just to say goodbye. I think I need the closure.”

“It’s only been two days, you should take more time to get over this-”

“But that’s the thing.” Johnny is shocked that you interrupt him, and he lets you speak. “There’s not much to get over. I don’t really feel that sad? If that makes any sense? I just- i need to go tell him what an asshole he was to me. I want him to see me. To feel bad. You know?”

“There’s no guarantee that seeing him will force him to feel bad.” Jaehyun states.

“Maybe he already regrets it a little.”

“He doesn’t.”

“How can you be so sure?”

Johnny watches the exchange between you and Jaehyun, and he sees that his friend has dug himself into a hole. Jaehyun’s eyes briefly move to Johnny for help, but the older demon relaxes in his chair. This isn’t his fight.

“Because i saw him today and he wasn’t beaten up about it, in fact-” Jaehyun says, running a hand through his hair, “he convinced his friend to sell his soul too, and the guy didn’t even have a soulmate so he had to give me his own soul.”

“What?” You look very confused, and Johnny enjoys just watching you when you speak, even if your attention is on Jaehyun. “Which friend?!”

“A Lee Jeno.” Jaehyun responds.

“What!?” now you look visibly upset, “but Jeno-”

“Looks like your ex is an asshole to his friends as well as his soulmates huh?” Johnny says, trying to make you feel better about it- after all, if Haechan got his friend to sell his soul too? The guy must be worse than how Johnny had initially perceived him to be.

“Looks like.” Your voice is sad, and Johnny approaches you, eager to make you feel better.

“I’ll take you to go see him.” he promises, reaching out to pinch at your chin. He’s pleased when you don’t move away, instead you simply stand still, looking up at him with eyes that he wants to drown in. “now go get some more sleep, okay?”

You nod and turn to leave. Johnny watches you go.

“Do you think it’s a good idea to let her see him?” Jaehyun asks once you’re gone.

Johnny shrugs, “what’s the worst that can happen while I’m there?”

When Haechan hears the lock to his front door click, at first he thinks he’s imagining things. His hand reaches for the side of the bed you used to occupy, fingers grazing over cold sheets, and he groans, pushing his face further into his pillow.

Then he hears your voice say ‘maybe he’s not home’, and Haechan knows he’s not dreaming.

He sits up suddenly, eyes going to his open bedroom door.

“He’s home.” Comes a deep response, and Haechan is leaping from the bed, grabbing his sweatpants and tugging them on whilst half tripping over himself. His hands flail out, grabbing his door frame for support, and Haechan sticks his head outside, looking down the hall to the living space-

He sees the demon first, and - as if able to sense the idol trainee - Johnny turns to lock eyes with the sleepy man whose home is being intruded upon.

“There he is, told you.” the demon says, and then you step into Haechan’s view, looking down the hall at him.

Haechan’s heart clenches in his chest, and the space on his arm that used to house your soulmate mark tingles, reminding Haechan even more of what he’d given up.

He thought he’d never see you again.

“What are you doing here?” Haechan asks, unable to hide the annoyance in his tone.

When the demons had taken you, Haechan had thought that would be the end of it. Seeing you again brings something like pain bubbling into Haechan’s chest, and he hates it.

“Aren’t you happy to see me Haechan?” your voice draws his gaze to you, away from the demon, and Haechan’s breath catches.

You look good. You and the demon are in similar outfits, and while it’s dressed down for Johnny - who Haechan has only seen in full suits - the look is a step up for you. You’re in dress pants and an oversized shirt, with sneakers to match, and Haechan realizes a new wardrobe must have been part of the deal for you- he wonders what else is new, his eyes going to your neck, looking for marks that would indicate you’d been unfaithful-

Unfaithful.

Haechan supposes you’re not his anymore- which is odd, because the soulmate mark had always felt like such a finality.

His gaze dips to your arm, to see if your mark is gone like his is-

And that’s when he notices the red scrawl where it had once been black.

“What’s on your arm?” Haechan asks, face twisting up in something like jealousy and anger. He steps out of his room, quickly approaching you and Johnny, his eyes fixed on the mark- which you cover with your hand, exposing another red phrase on your opposite forearm that had not been there before. “Are those-”

“New soulmate marks, yeah.” Your voice wavers slightly, and you can’t meet Haechan’s eyes. His fists clench at his sides and he steps forward, reaching for you, wanting to read what the marks say-

But the Johnny is standing there, his solid body forming a wall between you and Haechan, which only makes him more angry.

“This is bullshit.” Haechan growls, meeting Johnny’s deep gaze. He lifts his chin, “this is some trick- some weird demon thing to make you think you belong to them now.”

“She doesn’t belong to anyone.” The demon matches Haechan’s aggression level, squaring his shoulders, and it causes Haechan to take a step back- overwhelmed by the sudden power that radiates from the tall man in the young idol’s living room.

“And it’s not a trick.” your voice draws Haechan’s eyes, and you step around Johnny. Haechan doesn’t miss the way you touch his arm, which succeeds in making the demon move back a little, giving you and your ex some space. “My new mark is not why i’m here.”

“Then why are you here?” Haechan says, unable to hide the annoyance in his tone.

“Because-” he watches you swallow thickly, your fist clenching at your side, “Because- fuck you!”

“Fuck me?” Haechan is in shock.

“Yeah! Fuck you!” this time, you stomp your foot, something you’ve never done before. Then your finger rams into Haechan’s chest, “You were supposed to be my soulmate and you sold my soul to demons! And for what?!”

“To be famous.” the demon says.

“To be famous.” you scoff, rolling your eyes, another motion Haechan’s seeing you do for the first time. “I gave you everything Haechan, everything! If i wasn’t already happier than i ever was with you, i would have half a mind to make my own wish and get Johnny to eat your soul right now.”

Haechan’s heart lurches in his chest at the idea of being eaten by a demon- he’s pretty sure Johnny can’t touch him, after all, he’d made a contract- but when Johnny steps forward and Haechan instinctively moves back- he thinks it’s better not to test the waters.

“So you came here to make me say i’m sorry?” Haechan asks.

“No, I came here for this.”

Haechan is falling backwards before he can even register that you’ve punched him, and he stumbles against the couch, arms wildly flailing for something to grab onto - to no avail, and he hits the floor painfully, grabbing at his eye.

Deep laughter erupts through the apartment, and then the demon says, “nice swing.”

The last words Haechan hears you say as you leave with your new companion, are; “Thank you.”

You’d been as animated as Jaehyun had ever seen you when you arrived home with Johnny after visiting Haechan, and Jaehyun had listened to you recount the tale. Johnny had even insisted you show Jaehyun the way you punched your ex- something that had made both men burst into laughter when you’d diligently began shadow boxing in their living room-

But after the excitement from the day, you’d needed a nap, and you’d gone to sleep.

Johnny follows Jaehyun to his room, closing the door behind them, and then he’s brandishing his arm. “Look! I got a mark too!”

“Yours says… thank you?” Jaehyun raises a brow, “matching marks.”

He looks at his own ‘thank you’, whose red lines twirl around his wrist-

“I hid mine from her, like you hid yours.” Johnny says, his brown eyes lifting from their mutual marks to meet Jaehyun’s. “I’m not sure why.”

“What do you think it means?” Jaehyun asks, pulling away from the elder demon to go look at the landscape provided by the windows he adores.

“Maybe- and this is going to sound cheesy and crazy, but mostly cheesy-” Johnny sighs, and Jaehyun hears him move to collapse onto the lounge, “maybe she always deserved to have us, but now- we both did things to deserve her.”

“Johnny.” Jaehyun says, turning to look at his friend, “that’s the most sensical thing you’ve said in the past year.”

Things feel different now, and you can’t really explain it. You’d felt angry about Haechan selling your soul, but it hadn’t been until you saw him face to face that it truly became clear how little you actually missed him.

You find yourself looking down at your arms, at the new marks, with some frequency, and the more time you spend with the two demons, the harder it becomes to try to fight your attraction to them.

Where Haechan had been soft, tousled hair and half smiles, Johnny and Jaehyun are chiseled and statuesque, nothing like your previous puppy soulmate.

Jaehyun is especially beautiful, and when he comes into the kitchen while you’re cooking breakfast, it takes everything in your power to keep your eyes off of him.

“Excuse me.” He says, a hand finding your hip as he brushes past you to have access to the fridge.

Your mouth is dry, and your hip is burning from where his fingers had touched you. You’re sure your skin is heated everywhere, and hope Jaehyun doesn’t notice.

“What are you cooking?” Jaehyun’s voice interrupts your thoughts and he comes to stand next to you, shoulder almost touching your own.

“Just some eggs.” you tell him. Johnny had stocked the fridge for you after explaining that demons don’t eat regular food, and eggs seem to be one of the simpler things to make.

“Hmm.” Jaehyun moves again, and you’re quick to turn, to say something that will keep him in the kitchen with you- but now you’re face to face, nearly nose to nose- and his lips are right there-

Jaehyun’s hands finds your hips, and he steps back.

“Sorry, i-” you try to explain yourself, but close your mouth when Jaehyun also speaks, only for him to also stop. You sigh, “are you busy tonight?”

“Maybe, why?”

“Johnny said something about watching a movie.” you admit, unable to hide the need in your voice. You need normalcy. You need a movie to distract you from everything-

“Sounds like a good idea.” Jaehyun says. “Maybe i’ll come watch.”

He leaves the kitchen, and you’re left with your skin heated and your palms sweaty. It almost feels as if you just asked the demon out on a date, and you’re not sure if you should be happy or sad with his ‘maybe i’ll come’ response.

Jaehyun comes to join you and Johnny for the latter half of your film. He’d taken one look at your cute little shirt and shorts combo when you’d come to see if he wanted to watch, and had realized he wouldn’t make it through a full movie.

When he enters the living room, you move to make space for him, and Jaehyun has to struggle not to look at your pretty legs as you get closer to Johnny.

You’re watching a comedy, and it’s easy enough to follow along even whilst Jaehyun pays most of his attention to you.

You smell so good- Jaehyun wonders if Johnny took you shopping again. He’s getting increasingly jealous of the time you spend with Johnny- even though, he knows it’s his own fault.

Jaehyun knows the moment you fall asleep, slumping against Johnny’s shoulder, and he watches Johnny lift you up gently, carrying you to bed when the movie ends minutes later.

A moment later, Johnny is sitting on Jaehyun’s couch, running a hand through his hair.

“This can’t be a long term thing.” Jaehyun states.

Johnny scoffs.

“I can’t stand it.”

“Can’t stand what?” Johnny puts his feet up, turning to watch his friend with amusement in his eyes.

“You know what.” Jaehyun groans.

The way you’re their new roommate-

They way they both seem to have a soulmate now-

The way you cuddle up next to Johnny-

The way you’re so god damned cute in your little outfits-

The way you’re just out of his reach, and he’s never had to work for a girl’s affection before in his entire existence, and he’s been around a long time.

“Jae, trust me.” Johnny sighs, popping open a button on his shirt and loosening his tie. He’s been extra high strung, much like Jaehyun, since you arrived, but he shows it in his fashion, with clothes to hide the new mark on his forearm. “The soulmate tether goes both ways. Say what you want about any pairing, but there’s always chemistry. You just want yours to be more explosive.”

“As if you don’t want that too.” Jaehyun scoffs, annoyed at Johnny’s weak metaphor. He’s heard his friend do much better.

“Just give it time Jae, it’s been like, 4 days?” Johnny rolls his shoulders, getting comfortable in the seat.

Jaehyun knows Johnny is right.

He’s been alive for so long- a few more days, maybe weeks, they shouldn’t be that hard to get through-

And yet, time has moved so slowly since Jaehyun has met you- and he knows that the idea of staying away from you and being patient sounds much better in theory than it will in practice.

“Why do you even have your own room if you’re in here all the time?” you ask when Johnny finally exits Jae’s space.

Johnny stops mid stride, looking to where you’re sitting on the stairs that lead to your room. “How long have you been out here?”

“Why? Worried i’m not getting enough beauty sleep?” you cock your head, earning an eye roll from Johnny. “Just a little while.”

“Do you need water or something?” Johnny asks, heading to the kitchen.

You stand and follow the demon, “i’m okay.” you tell him.

“Maybe a drink then?” Johnny turns and offers you a bottle of beer, which you decline. “Can’t sleep?”

“I’m just-” you begin, and that’s when your eyes land on Johnny’s forearm, “hey!” you grab at him, eager to get a better look at his mark. “This-” you look up at Johnny, unsure what to even ask-

“It appeared yesterday, after your run in with Haechan.” Johnny explains.

“It says thank you.” you read in shock.

“Are you mad?” The vulnerability in the demon’s voice makes you look up again. You feel your body flush with heat and embarrassment.

“I’m not mad- i’m just-” you can’t find the exact words. This whole thing has been so confusing- “So Jaehyun-”

“Don’t be mad, but he has a mark too.” Johnny tells you, grabbing your hand so he can drag you with him towards his friend’s room. “His also says thank you.”

“It does?” you’re so overwhelmed, and you let Johnny and Jaehyun have a small discussion while Jaehyun brandishes his arm to you.

“We don’t even know what it means yet-” Jaehyun sighs, speaking more to Johnny than you.

“It means you’re my soulmates.” you state confidently. “Look.” you move your own hands forward, showing off the marks on either forearm.

“But-”

“Do you not want me?” you blink up at Jaehyun, who quickly shuts his mouth, frowning. “You don’t want me.”

“I do, it’s just-” Jaehyun sighs.

You suppose you should cut him some slack. The poor demon had simply signed a contract for a soul, he hadn’t been looking for a life partner- but you’re not going to make this easy for him.

“Johnny, you want me right?” you turn your attention to the softer of your two demon captors.

He swallows hard, nodding, and you find it endearing how easily you can take the power.

“Well if only Johnny wants me-” you turn towards the taller of your demons, and then Jaehyun’s hands are grabbing your hips and pulling you back against his chest.

“Don’t be like that, princess.” Jaehyun’s breath is hot against your neck. “I don’t like games.”

“And I don’t like people who can’t communicate.” You retort, shocked at your confidence a moment later.

Jaehyun won’t hurt you, demon or not, he’s your soulmate now, and this gives you all of the power. You refuse to have another situation where you bend over backwards for a man who won’t even meet your base relationship requirements- and all for a mark on his arm, that as you’ve just found out, can be replaced.

“Hasn’t it been clear from the start that we both want to just eat you up?” you can hear the smirk on his voice and it’s unbelievably sexy.

“Then what’s stopping you?” You breathe, grabbing at Johnny’s belt and using it to tug him to your front.

“As demons, we need verbal consent.” Johnny tells you, his hand coming up to cup your face.

Something tells you that’s more of a Johnny and Jaehyun rule than a demon one, but you don’t mind. “I want you both.” You whisper. “Please.”

Johnny is kissing you before your even fully done speaking, but you don’t mind. The demon’s grip on your face tightens, and then he’s slipping a hand down to the small of your back, dragging your body closer to his own-

Jaehyun doesn’t relent his grip on you, his own fingers digging into your waist as he grinds himself against your ass. You can feel his breath on your neck, and it’s Johnny who applies pressure to your jaw, prompting you to turn the angle of your head and give Jaehyun more access.

A moan slips past your lips when Jaehyun’s mouth makes contact with the column of your throat, and Johnny is quick to eat up the soft noise.

“You’re so cute.” he coos, pulling just out of your reach so he can taunt you with his sexy smile, eyes looking into your own. “So needy.” his thumb brushes your bottom lip and you swallow thickly, whimpering when Jaehyun presses another kiss to your throat.

“You know what’s funny?” you ask, wrapping your arms around the back of Johnny’s neck.

“What’s that, princess?” Johnny smiles, letting out a deep sigh as you get more comfortable against his chest.

“She’s gonna tell you something horrible,” Jaehyun responds behind you, “like maybe Haechan never made her cum properly.”

“Your last soulmate really was useless, huh?” Johnny chuckles, pausing for a moment before laughing even harder and throwing his head back, “no way, Jae, that’s honestly what she was going to tell us!”

“He was such a loser.” Jaehyun scoffs, running his nose up your throat before latching his teeth to your earlobe. “You’re in much better hands now.”

His fingers move up, then he grasps your breast, earning a mewl from you as you push back against him. “Fuck, please- prove it.”

“Hear that Jae?” Johnny grabs at your jaw again, gaze shifting past you, “she wants us to prove it.”

Jaehyun squeezes your breast again, smirking against your neck. “We can do that.”

“But what to do first?” Johnny’s eyes scan you up and down, and he licks his lips sinfully, the decision made right before your very eyes.

Jaehyun chuckles behind you, the exchange wordless, and then he’s lifting you up and taking you to the bed. The demon sits down, and as he’s about to pull you onto his lap, Johnny reaches for your shorts, tugging them off.

The air of the room is nice and cool against your skin, and Jaehyun is warm pressed to your back as he gets you comfortable on the foot of the bed. One of his hands slips between your thighs, prompting you to open them for Johnny, who is lowering to his knees.

“These are cute, princess.” Johnny tells you, reaching out to rub his thumb across your lace covered clit. “But i think i could find you nicer ones.”

“You and your obsession with French lingerie.” Jaehyun sighs behind you, pressing a kiss to your neck and adjusting the way he’s holding your body.

“It’s the best.” Johnny insists. “Besides, aren’t all panties made to be torn in two?”

There’s a sudden tug, and then Johnny is tearing your underwear down your legs, his hands pushing at your thighs to get them more open to accommodate his large shoulders a moment later.

“So your last soulmate never ate you out?” Jaehyun’s fingers skim up your bare arm, and you lean back against him.

“He did- he just-” a whimper forced from your mouth cuts off your thoughts, your hands going down to grab at Johnny’s soft hair as his tongue begins to flick at your clit. “Fuck- Johnny-”

“He’s good right?” Jaehyun’s hand returns to your breast and he massages it through your shirt.

“So good.” You moan, eyes closing as you loll your head back to rest on Jaehyun’s shoulder.

Then a finger slides into your core and you whimper even louder, hips lifting slightly at the new intrusion only for you to be held down by Johnny, who places his free hand on your hip, pinning you while his tongue works wonders.

“Jae-” you reach behind you, grabbing at Jaehyun’s hair and pulling his face to your neck, eager for the stimulation on your sweet spot.

You’re rewarded not only by his lips, but by his hand roughly pulling your shirt and bra down enough to expose your nipple to the cool air of the room, and then Jaehyun is pinching it. Your back arches, a whine leaving your mouth as you tug harder on Jaehyun’s hair, too overwhelmed by everything to know which stimulation to focus on.

“Oh my god-” you groan loudly, able to feel your orgasm rising in the pit of your stomach.

“No god down here kitten,” Jaehyun says lowly, “just us.”

You grab at Jaehyun’s knees as your orgasm slams into you, pussy clamping down on Johnny’s fingers, which curl up into you, prolonging the euphoria that’s running through your body in golden waves.

You’re left gasping when you finally come down from your high, and Johnny removes himself from between your legs. It’s Jaehyun flicking your nipple that has you shaking again, whimpering and cuddling against his body as your post orgasm neediness sets in.

“You really haven’t cum right in a while, have you?” Jaehyun laughs at you, and you pout, hiding against his shirt.

“It’s cute.” Johnny assures you, on his feet. He begins to unbutton his shirt and your eyes take in all the newly exposed skin.

“We have a thing for girls who get all dumb and soft the moment Johnny whips his cock out.” Jaehyun tells you, voice soft as his fingers brush up and down your arm.

You hum in response, looking up at Jaehyun and pressing a kiss to the underside of his jaw.

“What about your cock? Do i get bonus points for being a little slut for you too?” you ask, hooking your fingers in Jaehyun’s shirt in an effort to get his buttons undone.

Jaehyun lets out a chuckle that becomes a growl, and then he’s pinning you to the bed, grabbing both your wrists in one hand which he places over your head, slotting his hips between your legs. “Not only do you get bonus points princess,” he leans down and presses his lips to yours softly, your first kiss, but it turns aggressive when he grabs at your jaw, “you get to have your brains fucked out.”

You smile up at Jaehyun, “sounds perfect.”

When he kisses you this time, he lets go of your hands, and you’re able to grab at his hair now that you’re free. Jaehyun groans when you tug on the silky strands, grinding himself down against your core-

“Jae, please-” the contact of the front of his pants on your clit is way too delicious after everything Johnny just gave to you, and you’re eager to have your demons follow through with their promise of all but breaking your back.

Jaehyun’s hands tug at your shirt, and he has it off of you a moment later, followed closely by your bra. Once your breasts are exposed, Jaehyun’s mouth moves from your neck to your nipple, and you can’t help but whine softly, hips lifting while Jaehyun’s tongue swirls the sensitive nub.

Johnny’s shirtless now, and you lick your lips in anticipation, gaze dipping down to his cock, still hidden by briefs. Just as you’re about to beckon Johnny closer, eager to put your lips to use, Jaehyun slips his hand between your bodies and undoes his pants.

“Fuck, you’re so hot.” Jaehyun groans, teeth grazing your nipple one last time before he brings his kisses back to your face, wiggling from his pants.

“You’re so hot,” you respond, mind running on autopilot as you cup Jaehyun’s face, lips just meeting as he slides into you. You both groan loudly, Jaehyun’s tongue invading your mouth moments later as his hips begin to find a rhythm that has the bed rocking.

“Jae-” you claw at his back and Jaehyun growls, one of his hands finding your hip as he thrusts into you even harder.

“Feel good, princess?” comes Johnny’s voice, and you turn your head to look at the man standing and watching.

You nod, licking your lips and clearing your throat before you can mutter a “yes” even as Jaehyun works you up towards another orgasm.

One of Jaehyun’s hands grabs at your breasts, his thumb brushing over your nipple and making your back arch, pressing your body up against Jaehyun while you whine loudly. “Fuck, i’m gonna cum-”

“Then fucking do it.” Jaehyun growls, pressing his face into the column of your throat and peppering your skin in love bites, kisses and licks that have your toes curling.

“Jae!” you scream his name as your orgasm slams into you, and you lace your fingers in the demon’s hair while waves of pleasure slam into you.

Jaehyun’s pretty groans tell you he’s cumming too, and he grips you hard, squeezing you and making you feel incredibly small under his large body. “Fuck,” he groans, pressing a softer kiss to your neck when his hips come to a stop.

“Still ready for one more?” comes Johnny’s voice and you open your eyes when he brushes some hair from your face.

You nod eagerly, “yes, please.”

Jaehyun laughs in your embrace, pressing a kiss to your lips before lifting off of you and rolling to the side to give room to Johnny.

For a moment, you consider rolling over, giving Johnny access to you in doggy, which you’re sure will make him hit all the deepest spots- but when you look at your soft, brown eyed demon, you can’t imagine not being face to face.

You open your arms for Johnny and he chuckles, collapsing onto the bed and finding his place between your legs. “You sure?” he asks, fingers going between your legs to brush over your clit, which causes a shock to run through you at the sensitivity. “I don’t want to break you.”

“Liar.” Jaehyun scoffs.

“I just mean,” Johnny rolls his eyes, “we have all the time in the world.”

“Johnny?” you blink up at him.

“Yes, angel?”

“Just fuck me. I punched my ex soulmate yesterday, and I deserve it.”

“You make a good point.” Johnny laughs, and then he’s kissing you, smiling into the kiss even as his tongue dances over yours.

You reach between your bodies, grabbing at Johnny’s cock, and he groans against your lips. “Fuck me.” you tell him.

He laughs again, pushing your hand away so he can angle himself up with your entrance. “You sure?” he asks one more time.

You wrap your legs around Johnny, using them to force Johnny into you even as you gasp into his mouth at each inch after inch of intrusion. Once he’s buried to the hilt, Johnny presses a soft kiss to your nose, “ready?”

When he begins to thrust, he pulls nearly fully out of your core before pushing back in, and each motion has you grabbing at the sheets while sinful sounds leave your lips. “Oh my god-” Johnny laces his fingers with one of your hands, squeezing it before kissing you, eagerly eating up your mewls and moans.

“So fucking pretty.” Johnny tells you, hips pistoning into you even more roughly.

You slide your hand between your bodies, and your pussy clamps down on Johnny when you brush your clit, pleasure jumping through you. “Fuck, Johnny, I’m gonna cum-”

“Me too.” he tells you, groaning when your core tightens around him again from your continued stimulation of your clit. “You’re so fucking warm- and tight-”

He groans loudly, pressing his body down against yours as his hips find a pace that has you practically screaming. “Johnny!” you cry out, removing your hand from your clit as your orgasm slams into you, and your demon lover helps you through it, his hips working you through both of your highs until you’re nothing more than brain dead, panting, messes.

“Fuck,” Johnny says, letting out a shaky breath as he rolls off of you.

Your skin prickles from the coolness of the room, body no longer covered by the warmth of a body. You want to cuddle, but you’re immediately at a loss as to which man you turn to-

Luckily, Jaehyun makes the decision for you, his hand finding your hip and pushing until you’re on your side, your back to his chest as he gets comfortable behind you. His finger traces up and down your thigh.

None of you need to say anything because you’re all in the same boat.

This whole experience had been unexpected, to say the least, but you’re all content with it. The silence of the room is peaceful, in a way that silence never was when you were with Haechan. And as you get more comfortable against Johnny’s warm chest, a “thank you” leaves your lips.

This fic has a 300 word preference extension, exclusively on my Patreon, that details the ‘fingerprints’ left in the dark space by demons :) read it here and access other exclusive content by becoming a patron for $5 per month :)

My main masterlist :)

Please consider supporting me through kofi or paypal :)

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racheloveyunho · 3 years

Text

Nct scenarios

Warning: I’ve wrote none of this. This Masterlist is based on post that I reblogged on tumblr. Please reblog their work if you like it but do not repost, writers are working a lot to give us enjoyment, we should respect them and support them for it, thank you.

🍒 Smut/Suggestive 🌼 Fluff 💔 Angst 🔪Mafia AU 💘Soulmate AU ⚡Yandere AU 🐺Werewolves AU 😈Demon AU

Please let me know if a link isn’t working!

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My favorite scenarios:

[Johnny]

🌼 - [7:15 am] (@nctsplug )

[Doyoung]

🌼 - Tummy issues (@mochiable)

[Jaehyun]

🌼 🌼 🌼 - Marry me, you mess (@pastelsicheng)

🔪 🍒 - Well, maybe if you didn’t kill him (@tastyykpop)

🌼 - [12:13 pm] (@nctsplug)

[Mark]

🌼 - When a man loves a woman (@oursunhyuck-desactivated)

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- More scenarios under the cut -

Taeil

-soon

Johnny

🌼 - [8:41 am] (@nctsplug)

- soon

🌼 🍒 - I want another one (@saturnznct)

💔 🌼 - Hold Me (@sleepynct)

Taeyong

Yuta

- soon

Doyoung

- soon

Jaehyun

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🔪 ⚡ - Predator - Series - Part1 - Part2 (@cloudycrystalkpop)

🍒 - Address the ball (@b4nnedfics)

🍒 - [2:43] (@ssin-ent)

🌼 - [3:12 am] (@vyutas)

🍒 - [8:32 am] (@jaehyunssslut-deactivated202106)

🌼 - [9:17 am] (@vyutas)

💔 🌼 - [11:23 pm] (@nctsplug)

🍒 - [4:30pm] (@peachycheeks14)

🔪 🍒 - [8:41 pm] (@nctsplug)

🌼 - Cold hands (@nctsworld)

🌼 - Fight (@nakamotocore)

🔪 💔 🌼 - Bratty (@neo-culture-mafia)

💔 🌼 - I’ll be there (@prettyjaems-moved-deactivated20)

🍒 - Call me Daddy (@neoct-zen)

🌼 🍒 - I’m gonna cuddle you so hard (@tastyykpop)

Jungwoo

- soon

Mark

🔪 🌼 - Laundry (@mafia-nct)

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Haechan scenarios are there

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OT9

💔 - NCT 127 During an argument (@purplepsycho03)

🌼 - NCT 127: Ideal Types [Astrologie Edition] (@purplepsycho03)

🌼 - NCT 127 & Types of kisses (@kpopsnowball)

Main masterlist here

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peanutpinet · 1 year

Text

For You Only (pt. 2 of Anything for You) - Demon Jaehyun x Witch Reader

A/N: this is the pt. 2 of Anything for You, the demon Jaehyun fic that I did like last November. There's not much action and just some fluffy domestic things 🥹

Warnings: a fight scene, demon Jeong actually having feelings and a heart for the reader, probably cliche scenes but fluffy domestic actions (I'm such a sucker for this)

Link to Pt.1: Anything For You

How did you end up from begging for Jaehyun’s help when you were hurt and all bloody to going for a walk at the park in the middle of the night? Well, to the average person or even witches from your coven would find this ridiculous but to Jaehyun, it all just seems like another Tuesday night.

After you visited Jaehyun and talked to him, Jaehyun agreed to help you without having you to sacrifice your entire life and even freedom for him. However, he did make you promise, well made a deal with him to give him a chance into getting to know each other and even perhaps to take you out every so often which you didn’t think much of it because he practically saved you and your loved ones’ life.

So here you were, all dressed up in a cosy beige sweater and dark grey culotte with a black cardigan whereas Jaehyun was wearing a full black outfit but with a dark green/grey bomber jacket, his hair was slightly styled down compared to his typical slicked back look. One might even mistake him for a typical college or young CEO.

When you walked towards him, Jaehyun looked up from his phone and smiled the second his eyes laid on you; as if all the mortals surrounding the two of you are just some lost souls. Right when you were just in arms reach, Jaehyun handed you a bouquet of flowers which caught you off-guard but you accepted the flowers nonetheless.

While Jaehyun tried to hold your hand as you walked to the restaurant, you instinctively avoided him, telling him that that was a big step and you didn’t feel comfortable at all. Luckily enough, Jaehyun was considerate and proceed the day as he planned.

Arriving at the restaurant, you were amazed at how Jaehyun managed to get a reservation at a very renowned place. Seeing you being amazed made Jaehyun’s heart swell with pride. He called out for you and was directed by the waiter to the table.

Of course, being the gentleman he was, Jaehyun helped you in your seat as you took in the interior of the restaurant and practically took pictures for memories. Despite not talking that much, Jaehyun managed to keep the conversation light and even made you feel comfortable without having to push you to talk to him; as if talking with him just came naturally.

After lunch which Jaehyun paid for, he asked you if there was something that you’d like to do and decided to bring Jaehyun to the places where you like to go. Despite the whole date being Jaehyun’s idea, you also wanted to show him about the things that you like to do, to hopefully get him to understand where you’re coming from.

You took Jaehyun to the local cafe where you love to get your daily dose of tea and pastry which Jaehyun decided to get something to join in with you. The two of you sat by the window and Jaehyun asked if you’ve always done these mundane things alone which you replied back that oftentimes you would be alone and that’s mainly because you feel that every time you’ve become too close or attached to someone, that person would always get hurt which made you try your best to not easily be attached to anyone.

Seeing your distraught self, Jaehyun immediately pulls away from the topic to about himself, saying that he too also had a lot to sacrifice, especially when he was a human a long time ago. Curious, you asked him what were the things that he remembered as a human. Whether there were things that he missed when he was a human.

“It’s been long since I’ve become what I am today that I truly don’t remember much. I feel quite unattached with the current world. Though one thing that I’ve noticed hasn’t changed is that humans would always do whatever it takes for something or someone they truly love and care for. Just like you did for your people. But then again, that’s something that I actually envy of. Because at least it means that you have people you care about and vice versa” Jaehyun replied, looking out the window

“Well, what do you do on a daily basis nowadays?” you asked

“I mean, whether you supernatural beings notice it, there are actually a lot of lost souls. Especially after what happened” Jaehyun paused, squinting his eyes before looking back at you. “So, I have to collect them and punish them for what they’ve done” Jaehyun continued, sipping his coffee

“Do you collect all the souls? Both humans and supernatural?” you asked

“No. In fact, I rarely collect those souls. It’s only the difficult ones. However, I don’t just collect souls. After what happened in my previous life, I was punished to atone for what I’ve done by punishing those who have done wrong. Well, mainly the obvious ones. Like killing sprees, robberies, and even corruption. Well, especially those corrupted souls because those are the ones that cause the most trouble. Trust me when I say that a corrupted soul is the scariest of them all. Just like that powerful witch you had to go up against” Jaehyun mentioned

“But don’t you say that you have a daytime job?” you asked curiously, making Jaehyun chuckle. “What’s so funny?” you scoffed

“Nothing. It’s just interesting how you actually seem interested” Jaehyun teased, sipping his coffee a bit slower this time

“What? Just because I always seem serious, I’m not okay. If you don’t want to share then whatever” you tsked, looking away until you heard Jaehyun talk

“Like I said, I punish the corrupted souls. So my job technically has to be involved with all those corrupted souls” Jaehyun shrugged

“So like you’re in the mafia?” you asked whilst Jaehyun just chuckled

“I’ll save you that information, darling. I don’t like you to be involved in what I do here. You have a kind heart. One of the reasons why you interest me in the first place. I’d like to keep it that way. I don’t want you to be corrupted by the things that I do. I hope that they won’t scare you at least” Jaehyun admitted, making your heart beat in a certain way that you haven’t felt in a long time

Right when Jaehyun stated that short statement, you kept on rethinking about what your initial thoughts about Jaehyun. Sure, he was a demon and would often heavily punish people which others might think are a bit too harsh but after listening to his snippets, you came to a realisation that Jaehyun wasn’t actually as evil as everyone portrays him to be.

Sure, Jaehyun might actually like punishing some but then again, those people actually deserve it since they were all corrupted people. But even from Jaehyun’s story, there was still part of you that was unsure if what Jaehyun said was all true because you have never seen what Jaehyun actually does; even since you saved him, you have never encountered him again until you were the one that called out to him.

You didn’t realise how long you were in your own thoughts until Jaehyun called out to you, telling you that he needed to grab a few things for your at-home dinner date which you completely forgot ever since the conversation at the cafe.

The two of you strolled around the supermarket and grabbed a few things that you personally liked because Jaehyun said that he was pretty much alright with anything and he’ll just cook with whatever dish you were craving for. In addition, Jaehyun said that he would pay for everything; saying that it was his idea and he wants to treat you right which made your heart beat in a certain way again.

As Jaehyun was paying, your witch side was sensing something off around the neighbourhood. Following your instincts, you went out of the supermarket and follow the inner voice in your head that led you to a compound nearby where there was some sort of crowd that was just sitting down and hearing some sort of city announcement.

Unfortunately, before you could react, a fire started and it created a commotion. Using your powers, you secretly tried to put the fire out or at least help the crowd escape by redirecting the fire smoke. But what you failed to notice was a group of heretics coming to cause even more chaos than the fire they created.

Before you could finish your spell to make the fire go out, one of the heretics noticed you and in a blink, you felt a sharp pain both on your neck and arm because this heretic was both siphoning your powers and feeding from you. Right when you could hear your own heart beat slower, the pain was gone and a hand gently caught your head. Blinking slowly, you noticed that it was Jaehyun and he looked like he was worried but also wanted to kill someone.

“Why didn’t you say anything before you left?” Jaehyun questioned, softly cradling you, checking other injuries on you

“I can’t help it. I sensed something and my body moved on its own. I’m fine tho. You saved me, again. Looks like I’ll have a lot of debt” you tried to joke but Jaehyun just sighed

“We’ll talk later after I finish dealing with all these irritating supernaturals” Jaehyun sighed, kissing your forehead which helped you regain your powers back and Jaehyun walked to the mess, immediately taking control of the situation and punishing the heretics that caused the chaos in the first place.

After Jaehyun punished the heretics, he was about to take you and just leave but you convinced him to at least help clean up the mess which he eventually gave in because he just couldn’t resist you. Back at the safety of Jaehyun’s private suite, he took care of you himself, making sure that there wasn’t a scratch left on your body that he didn’t know about.

“I hope that this would be the last time that you jump into this kind of mess. I hate to see you get hurt or even cry” Jaehyun uttered, brushing your hair back

“No promises, Jae” you breathed out, just enjoying the small moments

“While I do love your courage and kindness, I hate when others take advantage of you for it. Ever since you saved me, I’ve been watching you whenever I have the chance and I hate how everyone never appreciates you. You deserve much much more and I would do anything to give it to you. That’s why I made the deal to have you stand by me; always and forever. Because at least by that, I would be able to watch and care for you” Jaehyun stated but he didn’t let you cut him off

“I know that I’m not the best person to show my feelings but that’s because deep down, I worry that once I show any sort of feelings, some will find me weak. Especially if they found out about you because darling, you’re my one weakness after centuries of living. But I know that you love the freedom to be able to roam around and experience whatever is it you want in this world. I know that my deal basically condemned you to stay by me but what I hate more than you being hurt is if I’m the reason for your sadness. So, I’ll cut the deal off” Jaehyun added, making you shock that the person that always punishes others and made sure everyone paid their debt would actually let you go freely

“Our outing, well dates, showed me that you’re like a bird. You’re gorgeous and love to spread your wings to wherever the wind will take you but once you’re caged, you lose that sense of flight and I don’t want that. I’ll let you go and live your life because that’s what you deserve. To be happy even if it’s with someone else. But I’ll still be watching over” Jaehyun whispered, cupping your cheeks and caressing them

Jaehyun was right. You do love your freedom but oftentimes, with that freedom, others would take advantage of it without you even knowing it. Though you were more than glad for Jaehyun cutting the deal off, you can’t help but wonder what Jaehyun will be doing if and when you move on from him, from all the moments you’ve had with him.

Sure, you were more than happy hearing Jaehyun finally understanding the life that you love but he wasn’t the only one that came to a realisation because you too finally understood that behind his cold stoic look was actually a man that became a victim centuries ago. A man that has never gotten the love and care that he deserved. But maybe, that’s why the universe brought you to each other. To complete the missing part of each others’ life. It was then that you finally made the decision to stay by Jaehyun till the end of time and if somehow one of you would leave the other behind, you would find a way to come back to each other in whatever life you were in.

“Jaehyun. Thank you. For understanding” you cried but Jaehyun wiped your tears and was about to let go of your cheek but you held his arm in place

“But I too finally understand about you. You deserve to experience the love and care that everyone do” you added, making Jaehyun confused but he let you continue

“I don’t want you to have to go through anything on your own. I want to stay. With you. I want to take care of you just as I have done for others. I want you to understand that having feelings doesn’t make you weak. As cliche as it sounds, it sometimes gives you the strength that you never noticed. I want you to feel the freedom that I’ve felt. And to experience new things together. That is, if you also want to” you confessed as Jaehyun was the one to hold your hand now

“If that’s truly how you feel…I, I truly am grateful to have you and to be able to meet you. I just don’t want you to regret your decision later because I’m not an easy person to care for and so if you do change your…” Jaehyun started but you stopped him, cupping his cheeks, his normal cold skin felt warmer

“I know you might not be an easy person to understand but that’s the beauty of it. There’s always a rainbow at the end of a storm. And you’re no different, Jung Jaehyun. You were once human yet you never got the love and care you deserve. So let me give you that” you breathed out. The first person to have ever said his human name after centuries, igniting something in Jaehyun after centuries of not feeling anything

Leaning closer, Jaehyun scanned your expression to see any uncomfortableness but when he doesn’t find one and was actually welcomed with a smile and nod, Jaehyun was done holding back. He cupped your face and closed the gap between the two of you. Maybe, you were right. Jaehyun was human even if it was centuries ago. He still had a heart and feelings. Perhaps, all of those good and loving parts of him were waiting for the right person, you. Because now that you were his, Jaehyun has no intention of holding back everything that he has felt for you. Everything that he does. Every decision he makes. It’s all for you, only.

A/N: I hope that you all have been well because someone at work has been pissing me off and I just need some escapism plus my lovely author friend @mymoodwriting and some of the readers wanted a pt.2 on the Jaehyun demon fic. So, I hope that this satisfies everyone about hoping that the reader falls for Jaehyun! Alright, time to go back to being a corporate slave and hopefully I'll be able to write another story soon (was thinking alpha hybrid Johnny, hehehe). Stay safe :) xoxo Vinet

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alreadyblondenow · 4 years

Text

Jaehyun’s Body | Jung Jaehyun (TEASER)

▸ Jaehyun x reader ▸ Smut, Smut, Smut, Fluff, Angst, Demon Jaehyun ▸ HALLOWEEN SERIES: 127 HOUSE ▸ 5/5 for NEOHALLOWEEN writing festival hosted by @nct-writers

Summary: Jaehyun is a demon who uses girls to make him stay handsome. He eats girls… literally. Then he met you and he can’t eat you because he’s in love with you.

Warnings: Sex, sex, sex, a lot of killings, Blood, lots and lots of blood, killings again, then another killings, eating of human flesh, filthy (I’m telling you), all kinds of sex, swearing, abduction, mentions of other idols, mentions of eating children but he stopped don’t worry

A/N: Pure fiction, we all know that Jaehyun doesn’t need girls to make him handsome. I made this filthier than ever because it’s my last fic for 127 House. I made a timestamp for this as a bonus preview so if you already read it, yay. Inspired by the movie Jennifer’s Body. Gore (?) after the cut, then followed by smut.

Date: Nov 5

PREVIEW, SEND AN ASK OR MESSAGE ME IF YOU WANT TO BE TAGGED

Once upon a time, there were five teenagers who want to make a deal with the devil. The clueless teenagers did not know that what they were doing was wrong. Meaning, wrong methods, wrong sacrifice.

Given that they don’t know what they were doing, they singlehandedly or accidentally brought a creature into this world. The bothered creature that was summoned ate the teenagers as the creature was so confused, why was he bothered in his own torture cell in hell?

It starved for days, lost in a world that’s not familiar to him. He fed himself with every human who crosses paths with him, men, women, and children. Until it finally knew that eating humans can make him look just like them.

The creature adapted in this world, living like a normal human and walking amongst us, still not knowing how to go home.

“And that creature is me. Happy Halloween class, enjoy the night” Jaehyun finishes his story in front of his class. Watching every student laugh and shrug his ‘scary’ story for Halloween. They thought he was joking, and that was the fun part Jaehyun thought.

“See you on our next session Mr. Jung” a flirty young girl waved goodbye to him, smiling like she wanted to get on her knees and suck Jaehyun's cock right then and there.

“Enjoy Halloween” he winked back at her and proceed to fix his things and leave the classroom.

It was exactly a decade ago when those stupid teenagers brought him to this world. He didn’t have much of a choice but to live like a normal human to save himself. Feed from their flesh, kill every two weeks, and get on with life as if nothing gruesome happened inside his house.

Jaehyun targets girls, women in their early twenties or older. He stopped eating children only because the effect on him does not stay for long. Whereas, eating older people can last two weeks max. Luring girls was never hard for Jaehyun because he’s naturally handsome, but without human flesh, he returns to the disgusting creature he used to be.

Tinder is his go-to restaurant. A little swipe right over here, a swipe right over there, and voila! He now has a tasty dinner and for Halloween night, perfect to celebrate his existence here in this world.

As part of his adaptation in this world, he learned how to cook human meals for his victims. Feeding them good food before he eats them. In the middle of cooking in his big kitchen, his doorbell rang assuming that it’s his food that just arrived. He opened his door with a smile, welcoming the young lady inside his beautiful house, smelling her for some time during the hug. Delicious, he thought.

“Wow. Your house is big” the clueless girl exclaims. It’s always the same, every girl who steps inside his house is always amazed at how beautiful 127 House is. It’s white interior always captures the ladies’ hearts and leave them in awe.

“I hope you’re hungry. I made dinner for us” he gave the girl a flirty smile, flashing those cute dimples of his that always make the girls smile.

During dinner, Jaehyun can’t rush his meal and get on with the kill already. He is patient and takes time to know what he’s about to eat. He asks a lot of questions to gain the girl’s trust and fool her that Jaehyun is actually into her. “Do you do drugs?” the most important question for the night. Jaehyun hates eating humans who do drugs because it has a side effect on him as if his body can’t handle the drugs itself that it makes him weak on the spot. So much for being a creature from hell.

“No, I don’t do drugs. Do you?” the girl answered with wide eyes.

“No no. I’m clean” he smiled and put his hand on the girl’s thigh. Slowly caressing it until Jaehyun reaches her damped panties. “Can you open your legs for me?” Jaehyun’s irresistible request made the girl open her legs a little wider under the table. Rolling her head side to side as she feels Jaehyun’s cold fingers brushing on her clothed clit.

It’s time, Jaehyun thought. Dinner is served.

He pushed the plates away, glasses clinking, utensils started to fall from the table. Jaehyun carried her and put her on the dinner table, kissing her wildly to put the girl in the mood and make her horny. It always works. While he’s busy kissing her, his hands slowly remove her panties and spread her legs a little rough and push her on the dinner table.

“We really doing this here?” the girl asks.

“This is the perfect place to eat you”

The girl smiles and felt excited because a handsome man like Jaehyun is about to eat her pussy. Little did she know, that Jaehyun will quite do it literally. He planted kisses on her inner thighs, making the girl moan and tickle in the meantime. Jaehyun runs a finger on her slit and makes her legs shiver, licking his finger as if he’s having a taste of his dinner.

“Eat me already” she protests. Jaehyun chuckled low and puts two fingers inside her before he makes a move.

Jaehyun’s first lick from her pussy makes his head turn and breathe heavily for the girl he’s about to eat tonight tastes delicious. He licks and licks the girl, not listening to her moaning, not minding if she’s calling his name. The way he licked the girl was like he was having ice cream on a hot summer, sucking her arousal and putting pressure on her clit. Unaware of what’s happening to the girl, he didn’t care if she already came and overstimulated. Jaehyun continued licking his dinner even though the girl is pushing him already, but still having the time of her life.

She then felt Jaehyun bite clit and made her shout a little too loud that her voice echoed around 127 House. She propped her shoulder and saw Jaehyun’s eyes turned plain black. He smiled at her making the girl shout in horror and shout for her life but Jaehyun’s tongue is making her cum again for the second time tonight, harder than the first one she had.

And that’s Jaehyun’s cue to eat her. Bit her off. Letting her blood pool around his dinner table. He ate her flesh by flesh, sipping every drop of her blood, chewing all her intestines, licker the flavor off her skin like an animal. He can feel himself glow as he continues to eat her.

Pouring himself a glass of his favorite wine, he looks at his reflection through the goblet and admires his handsomeness. Skin clearer as ever, eyes without dark circles, firm ass. He smiled to himself as he feels much more alive and young now. Jaehyun went back to the dead body on his table, kissing the girl on the cheek and thanking her for making him handsome.

FULL FIC HERE

#nct-writers #kdiner #neohalloween #nct smut #jung jaehyun smut #nct jaehyun smut #nct x reader #jaehyun x reader #nct fluff #nct angst #nct demon au #nct imagines #nct scenarios #nct 127 smut #jaehyun smut #jeong jaehyun smut

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baekiesbaby · 4 years

Text

El Guardián - Yuta Nakamoto ft Jaehyun

(Demon Au)

Pareja: Yuta Nakamoto (Demonio) x Lectora (Humana).

Advertencias: Violencia, mención de muerte?

Número de palabras: 1497

A pedido de @psychicpiecolorgiant

Me tomé la libertad de centrarlo en Yuta,espero que no te moleste ☺️

Por cierto, lamento la tardanza pero me dieron mucha tarea y textos para leer y estudiar así que estuve un poco ocupada.

Pd: Espero que te guste 💕

(Sorry pero no encontré un gif de ellos dos solitos)

El sol comenzaba a esconderse, dándole paso a la oscura y fría noche, mientras caminabas con apuro por las calles de la ciudad. Luego de un largo día repleto de exámenes y trabajos prácticos,lo único que querías hacer era llegar a tu departamento,comer algo,tomar una ducha y dormir. El trayecto desde tu escuela hasta tu hogar no era muy largo,por lo que siempre lo hacías a pie. Te gustaba caminar,recorrer las calles y observar lo que te rodeaba. Te distraía y te hacía olvidar por momentos de todos tus problemas. Era un tiempo de soledad del que disfrutabas mucho.

Centraste tu mirada en el suelo. Con cada paso que dabas,intentabas no pisar las líneas que dividían las baldosas de la acera. Era divertido.

Para cuando te diste cuenta,ya te encontrabas a metros de tu edificio. Sacaste las llaves de tu mochila mientras te acercabas a la puerta. Estabas a unos metros de ésta pero no pudiste llegar hasta ella. Alguien te empujó desde atrás,logrando desestabilizarte y haciendo que caigas al suelo.

- ¡Oh! ¡Lo siento mucho! ¡Qué distraído! - Exclamó una voz masculina. Levantaste la mirada desde donde te encontrabas, clavándola en la persona que te había empujado. Era un joven de tu edad. Tenía el cabello castaño y una pequeña sonrisa adornaba su rostro. Comenzabas a creer que no sentía remordimiento alguno por haber chocado contigo. El desconocido te tendió una de sus manos para ayudarte aunque ignoraste su gesto y te levantaste por tu cuenta. La sonrisa del joven se agrandó. - Me agradas.- Comentó él en un susurro. Su sonrisa daba miedo, por lo que retrocediste un poco. Estabas confundida y asustada. ¿Qué le pasaba a ese chico?

Antes de que puedas siquiera dar otro paso,el castaño,con una velocidad increíble y casi sobrenatural,se abalanzó sobre ti, agarrándote fuertemente para que no escapes de él y haciendote retroceder hasta que tu cuerpo hizo contacto con la pared de una de las edificaciones vecinas a tu edificio. Estabas atrapada entre él y la pared de concreto. Tus ojos se abrieron de par en par mientras el miedo crecía en tu interior. El pánico se apoderó de ti y comenzaste a moverte de manera descontrolada intentando soltarte de su agarre. Abriste la boca para gritar,pedir ayuda,pero ningún sonido salía de ésta. Sentías como si algo hiciera presión sobre ella,silenciandote completamente. Tu mirada se clavó en la del desconocido. Su sonrisa seguía allí. Ahora que estaba tan cerca de ti, podías ver qué era apuesto pero totalmente terrorífico. Sus ojos eran completamente negros.

- Luchar no te servirá de nada,linda. Aun que, adelante, hazlo,es más divertido para mí.- Susurró el joven mientras aumentaba la fuerza de su agarre en ti, causandote dolor. Cuánto más te movías e intentabas separarte de él, más fuerte se volvía su agarre. Tus ojos se volvieron vidriosos. Las lágrimas comenzaron a desender por tus mejillas.

Querías hablar,rogarle que te soltara pero la presión invisible e inexplicable seguía allí presente impidiendo que emitas sonido alguno.

Con gran rapidez,una de las manos del joven se dirigió a tu garganta,ejerciendo presión sobre ésta. Ahora te costaba respirar. Seguías luchando pero era inútil. El joven poseía una fuerza inhumana. No podías escapar.

Poco a poco,todo a tu alrededor comenzaba a volverse borroso. Estabas cerca de perder el conocimiento. Todo daba vueltas.

- Sueltala Jaehyun.- Oíste una voz de un tercero hablando antes de que tus ojos se cerraran y fueras rodeada por la oscuridad.

∆~∆~∆~∆~∆

Yuta andaba por las calles de la ciudad sin apuro. No tenía un destino definido. Sólo deseaba salir y no pasar la tarde/noche en su solitario departamento. La vida de un demonio como él no era tan fácil como parecía o como cualquiera creería. La soledad era algo que realmente le entristecía y molestaba en cierto punto. Por eso,siempre intentaba mezclarse entre los humanos para no sentirse completamente sólo. Caminar entre ellos y observarlos era parte de su rutina y le generaba cierta satisfacción.

Los humanos eran realmente interesantes para él. Ésto claramente resultaba extraño para una criatura de su especie. Ellos detestaban a los humanos o trataban de mantenerse alejados de ellos,mientras que él hacía todo lo contrario.

Pero aún que quisiera,no podía evitarlo.

Probablemente era el único que deseaba pasar tiempo con los humanos,aprender de ellos y no dañarlos. Yuta sabía,era consciente de que no era correcto ni propio de alguien como él pero no quería cambiarlo tampoco.

Muchas veces había pensado que tal vez,no era malvado como el resto. Tampoco era que se considerara un ángel, claramente no,pero no tenía ninguna intención de dañar a los humanos.

Cuando llegó al mundo humano,no quiso volver a su lugar de origen pero tampoco quería causarle sufrimiento a los habitantes de ese mundo,como lo hacían sus compañeros,ni tampoco deseaba enfrentarse y molestar a un ángel guardián. Él se mantenía expectador de las luchas entre su especie y sus enemigos naturales porque no solo no eran de su agrado, sabía que si se metía en ese tipo de batalla, tendría problemas. Y eso,no le permitiría cumplir su misión. Ahora ¿Cuál era su misión en este mundo? Aún no lo tenía en claro pero estaba seguro de que tenía una. Algo en su interior le decía que debía seguir buscando. Pronto lo entendería. Y Yuta no pensaba luchar contra sus instintos.

Yuta dobló a la derecha al llegar a la esquina de la calle por la que caminaba y luego de dar un par de pasos,se detuvo de repente. La calle se encontraba extrañamente desierta. Las luces que la iluminaban eran más tenues que las de cualquier otra cuadra. Algo andaba mal. Un sentimiento extraño apareció en su interior. No sabía qué era ni podía distinguir su significado pero claramente no era nada bueno. Siguió avanzando con precaución. Pronto entendió a la perfección lo que ocurría allí. Jaehyun. El demonio asesino. El que Mataba humanos por pura diversión. Jugaba con ellos para luego dejarlos sin vida. Le encantaba desafiar a los ángeles guardianes. Se alegraba con el sufrimiento que ellos sentían al perder al humano que debían cuidar.

Jaehyun se encontraba a un costado aprisionando a un humano. Desde donde se encontraba,Yuta no era capaz de visualizar con claridad a la víctima. Avanzó un poco más,ahora sí,distinguiendo a la persona que el demonio mantenía prisionera. Era una chica,joven y muy bonita para él. El sentimiento extraño en su interior se intensificó al ver a la joven mientras algo más crecía en su pecho. Ira. Una furia desmedida comenzaba a recorrer su cuerpo. Lo único que deseaba era que Jaehyun se alejara de la humana,de ti.

- Sueltala, Jaehyun.- Ordenó con firmeza sin pensarlo mucho. Las palabras habían salido de su boca sin siquiera darse cuenta. Sus manos estaban cerradas dejando a la vista sus puños mientras intentaba calmar su respiración que poco a poco comenzaba a descontrolarse.

Jaehyun se giró en su dirección y lo observó con sorpresa por un instante,para luego observarlo con completa diversión.

- Yuta Nakamoto... Wow,¡Cuánto tiempo si vernos! ¿Cómo has estado?- Preguntó el demonio con una sonrisa ladina. Yuta gruñó. El enojo que sentía aumentaba conforme los segundos pasaban.

- Te dije que la sueltes. No pienso repetirlo.- Dijo Yuta acercándose más a él.

- Uf,que aguafiestas.- Comentó Jaehyun con una mueca antes de apartarse bruscamente de la humana,osea de ti. Yuta se dió cuenta de que habías perdido el conocimiento por lo que estabas a punto de caer de lleno al suelo. Sin pensarlo,con mucha velocidad, Yuta corrió hacia ti,tomándote en sus brazos antes de que te golpearas con el concreto. El joven te observó con sorpresa. Se sentía demasiado bien tenerte entre sus brazos y eso le asombraba.

- ¿Acaso ahora trabajas para el enemigo? ¿Te convertiste en un ángel guardián? - Preguntó en tono de burla Jaehyun quién observaba la escena con aburrimiento. Se podía notar el desprecio que sentía al pronunciar las dos últimas palabras.

- No. No soy un ángel guardián. Me considero un guardián demoniaco. - Respondió Yuta satisfecho al ver la molestia expresada en el rostro del otro demonio. Lo estaba haciendo enojar. Y aunque realmente deseaba seguir molestando a Jaehyun, decidió que lo mejor sería irse rápidamente de allí,te tenía a ti con él,no podía perder el tiempo con el otro joven. Antes de que Jaehyun pudiera siquiera decir algo más,Yuta se teletransportó a su departamento dispuesto a cuidarte y revisar que no tuvieras heridas. Al pensar que podrías estar herida,la tristeza invadió a Yuta. Quería protegerte a pesar de no conocerte. Guardián demoniaco. Pensó mientras una sonrisa satisfactoria se dibujaba en su rostro. Le gustaba esa denominación. Tal vez era esa su misión,la que tanto buscaba y no podía encontrar. Tal vez esa era realmente su función en el mundo humano. Protegerte,ser tu guardián.

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neowinestainedress · 3 years

Text

ya’aburnee ; jeong jaehyun

title: ya’aburnee

part two of amami ancora

pairings: jeong jaehyun x OC, lee donghyuck x OC | (side characters, lee mark, lee taeyong, suh johnny, lee jeno, kim doyoung, nakamoto yuta, qian kun | mentioned na jaemin)

genre: royal au, bodyguard au, forbidden relationship au, arranged marriage au, angst with happy ending, fluff, smut, domestic

warnings: tbh a lot of plot, angst, lots of angst but with a happy ending, donghyuck being an asshole (it’s just for the sake of the fic, i love him), mentions of mourning, fake death, pregnancy, birth (kinda explicit, idk mentions of broken water, contractions and blood), fluff, domestic feeling, implied parenthood, smut, gentle / intense sex, postpartum sex (if the timing is not realistic i’m sorry, i tried my best to make everything fit), body worship, breeding kink (back at it again, lmao, it’s more pregnant body worship), oral sex (f and m receiving), fingering, dirty talk, praise kink, minor sub/dom dynamic, that should be all.

summary: Ya’aburnee; an Arabic term that literally means “You bury me,” a declaration of one’s hope that they’ll die before another loved one because of how unbearable life will be without them. Not every love story is all fun and games. Some are hard, star-crossed, damned to the point they might get stained with blood. For some loves, you have to fight ten times harder, risk a bigger price and put your heart on the line. Sometimes waiting for the Prince to come and save you is not what’s written in your destiny. Scarlett wanted to be saved, but not by a Prince, by a bodyguard that vanished in that far morning of late March. So she had to take the matter in her hand and hope to make it out alive. Pray that all of them were going to make it out alive.

word count: 22.225

songs: love story | darling | 1121 | ya’aburnee

A/N: I have mixed feelings for this piece, let’s say it was harder than expected to write a sequel for the first part that was almost just smut. I had thousands of different ideas but would’ve been too tragic or too no sense so I settled with this one and I’m not sure you’re going to like this. There’s a lot of plot but I swear IT GETS BETTER. I had to write it like this to make the story more realistic, if you want more of this two together I could write a third part, maybe? Also I had a terrible week so I tried to look out for any mistakes but something might have slipped. Send feedbacks, please, I’d really like to know what you think about this one, because I’m not sure at all I gave you what you wanted.

Autumns were always long and bittersweet for Scarlett, but this one was worst than any before with Jaehyun's presence lingering in the air bringing along a never felt before kind of pain.

Jaehyun’s phantom brought more cold seeping in her bones than the bitter wind that raged on the country.

It was a long fall, that seemed to have no end. Like a long sleepless night, where your body is begging for you to give in but your brain refuses to, and you’re forced to fight with demons you have no strength to face. So you let them eat you, tear you apart, carried along by the current.

That’s exactly how Scarlett felt as she closed her eyes, breathing in the moist air that stung on her skin while she rested her palms on the balcony. The classical music played by the orchestra was muffled by the distance and barely reached the calm place she run to when she managed to escape from everybody. The Prince, The King and her new bodyguard.

She sighed, feeling tears prickle at the corner of her eyes while she stared at the horizon, the city fading in the vast hills and plains of her Kingdom.

She thought she would be happy of finally coming back to her palace, to her family, but she was wrong. So damn wrong.

What a fool she had been thinking she forgot him. Pretending that everything was fine, that maybe she could start to get along with Donghyuck, force herself to like him until she started to feel something. But nothing of it happened, and the fragile bond she had formed with him, crumbled into pieces as soon as she put a foot into the castle.

Everything reminded her of him. The walls were screaming his name, her bed smelled like him, every voice that called her name resembled his.

His presence was haunting her like a spell put on her, a curse she couldn’t get away from. It had been almost six months and he was still imprinted in her mind, burning vividly like a flame in the back of her head.

She grabbed the handrail tighter and pressed her lips together, suppressing a groan back into her throat. Her head was throbbing from pain and so was her chest, let alone she felt extremely nauseous and dizzy. Probably it was the music, or the lights, or the travel all the way here. Whatever it was, she was exhausted.

“Scarlett,” his voice.

She turned around gasping and saw him leaning against the frame of the huge window door, he was wearing an expensive suit, embodied with silver and full of targets on the front pads. His hair was neatly pulled back and his sweet smile decorated his beautiful face.

“Jaehyun,” she mumbled incredulous, feeling her heart skip some beats.

“What are you doing here?” She asked, not even thinking about getting mad at him for having left her behind without saying a word. It had hurt so much when she woke up alone in that bed and didn’t find him anywhere in the castle. And worst of it all was that she had to pretend everything was fine and ignore the burning pain she felt in her chest. To everybody’s eyes, he was just her bodyguard, and she wasn’t supposed to be attached to him.

“I came here to see you, love,” he smiled, his brown eyes sparkling and his dimples showing on his cheeks.

“How did you get in?”

He chuckled, tilting his head to lean against the frame, “I know this place like the back of my hand, Scarlett.”

A smile crept on her face as she took a step closer to him.

“We can run away,” she proposed without hesitation, not even minding to keep her voice low.

“Scarlett,” he called.

“Yes?” She asked, tilting her head.

“Scarlett,” he repeated and she chuckled in confusion.

“Why are you repeating my name?” She asked, a furrow forming on her front.

“I couldn’t find you, that’s why.”

Her smile dropped as she shook her head and squeezed her eyes just to open them again and meet the figure of the Prince standing where Jaehyun was.

She looked around in panic and tears started streaming down her face.

“No, no,” she murmured, moving her hands on her face to wipe the tears away, frenetically looking around.

“Scarlett, what’s wrong?” Donghyuck asked, grabbing her shoulder but she pulled away. She hated when he touched her. He pulled back with a hurt expression on his face. “Was somebody trying to harm you?”

She shook her head, facing the pavement beneath her feet, squeezing her eyes shut and inhaling deeply.

Jaehyun was gone.

Jaehyun was never there.

He was only in her mind, haunting her, making her go crazy.

“It’s cold,” the Prince stated, suggesting to go back inside. “Also, you need to stop running away like this, your bodyguard is going crazy downstairs.”

She scoffed, Jaehyun never lost track of her. Never. He always had his eyes on her and at the same time, all of his senses were focused to look out for possible danger. This new bodyguard had nothing on him.

“I’m tired,” she announced, passing the Prince and walking down the stairs, not even sparing him a glance. She didn’t want him to see her like that, he would’ve asked questions she couldn’t answer.

“What do you mean with that? The ball is not even near to be over,” Donghyuck ran after her, soon coming by her side, walking down the stairs.

“I don’t care,” she replied. “I don’t feel good, I’m going to pass out.”

“Scarlett, you have to follow your duties, you can’t-”

“My duties are in the meeting room planning the future of my country, not playing the lovely doll in the ballroom by your side. It’s not my duty to look pretty with your arm intertwined with mine. It’s not my duty to kiss you in front of my parents just to make them happy,” she snapped, coming to a stop to face him.

Donghyuck sighed, “You still hate me, don’t you?”

“And I’ll always will,” she affirmed, turning around running away from him.

When she reached her, their, room she broke down crying, finally letting out all the pain she bottled up in her body.

She was going insane.

Her heart was beating faster than normal and the dress felt suffocating, she leaned against the door and tried to calm herself down, but as soon as she closed her eyes, Jaehyun appeared in the back of her brain.

She let out a piercing scream that none could hear anyway, too busy to be blinded by gold and diamonds to care about how she felt.

Shaking, she stood on her feet and walked closer to the vanity table searching for something. The dress was getting on her nerves.

Once she found what she was looking for, she felt the cold metal of the scissors against her skin, she didn’t hesitate to make it slide along the length of the fabric, tearing it apart with anger when the scissors got stuck in a seam.

She let them fall to the ground and walked to the bathroom, letting the hot water run in the bathtub. She wiped the tears from her face and walked toward the mirror.

Taking her figure in, she felt disgusted by herself. She had lost weight and the bones of her face and the ribs were showing, yet she was bloated and her chest felt heavier than ever. The eye bags under her eyes were there, now hidden by the layer of makeup but she knew they were there. They were the results of countless nights up, turned to the other side of the bed after pushing the Prince away because she had no intention to have sex with him.

The water spilling out of the tub made her turn back to reality. She closed the faucet and got in, letting her skin burn at the contact of the hot liquid.

She wanted to get rid of everything; of Donghyuck's touch, of Jaehyun's touch that was still lingering on her, of her touch. She wanted to disappear.

She took one last deep breath and sank down to the surface.

Bonding times were the worst for her. Especially when Donghyuck made their deal appear like a real relationship. He was always so happy every time he talked about her, or worst, about them, covering what they had with glitters and gold when simply nothing was tying them together. Not something that was genuine at least.

“I feel like you’re hiding something, love,” Donghyuck whispered, taking her hand in his as they walked outside in the royal park. It wasn’t too cold thanks to the sun that was kind enough to shine in the grey September sky.

Scarlet felt her skin curl at that pet name, she hated how it came out of his lips. Only Jaehyun was allowed to call her that.

“I don’t want secrets in our marriage,” he added when no answers came out of her lips. He turned around to look at her, his expression was full of emotion she couldn’t get, and couldn’t even care to get.

“No secrets,” she answered, looking at him. “I hate parties, and dresses that suffocate me.” She smiled, it was fake but Donghyuck had no idea. He didn’t know her. He’ll never know her.

“I still think you should see a doctor,” he suggested, pulling out of her hold and letting his arm wrap around her waist. She wanted to pull away but didn’t. “You’ve been feeling weird for a while now.”

“It’s the air of your country, Donghyuck. It triggers my allergies,” she tried to shrug it off. She had a bad sensation in her guts, honestly. It felt like something big was behind her pains but she didn’t want to face it. She would’ve had to deal with it by herself, nobody by her side. So it was better to pretend that everything was fine. Probably it was just a mix of anxiety and stress given by her situation, it would’ve passed.

Donghyuck furrowed and tilted his head to the side, “And now that you’re back home?”

“Anxiety for the marriage,” she replied without hesitation. Anxiety wasn’t even the right feeling to explain how she felt; she was terrified, petrified about what was about to come. Him and her father completely cut her off from the country’s affairs. She wasn’t going to be a queen regnant but a queen consort. Sitting prettily at her husband’s side doing absolutely nothing. She was just there to reassure their countries’ relations and peace. And that made her even angrier, Jaehyun left because he wanted her to be in control of her country, to take the lead and finally have everything she had been trained for since she was a child. And now, she wasn’t getting it.

Donghyuck sighed, he was fully aware she didn’t love him, but he genuinely liked her. “I just want you to give me a chance,” he whispered. “I’ll love you like nobody else ever will.”

Scarlett held back a laugh and nodded mindlessly. “We’ll see,” she mumbled. But she knew it wasn’t going to happen. She had one true love in her whole life and nothing would come close to that.

“Where is she?” The Queen asked the maids women that were cleaning the Princess’s room.

“In the bathroom, a lady is with her, she’s still vomiting, your Majesty.”

The Queen nodded and walked into the bathroom to see the Princess kneeled with a handmaid holding her hair to the side.

“Scarlett, my love,” her mother whispered with a voice full of worries.

The maid cleaned Scarlett’s mouth with a handkerchief and then left the room after the permission of the Queen, leaving the two alone.

“Mother,” she mumbled, looking down on the pavement, too ashamed to look at her. She never felt like this in her life, all the strength in her body completely gone.

“What’s going on, little star?”

She smiled at the soft name, her mother was the only one that seemed seriously worried about her health in the last months, and the only one she ever had a great bond with. Her father was just afraid for the kingdom, for the affairs and the money. He never really cared for her.

“It’s the weather,” she said, forcing a smile to appear on her face while she gathered the courage to look up and meet her mother’s gaze.

“Don’t lie to me, please.” Time scratched her face and the wrinkles sat on her caring face, but time never took away her sweet eyes and smile.

“I’m not lying, I just think that I suffer all these movements between the countries, and the food, and everything that comes with this,” she muttered, gesticulating nervously.

Her mother giggled and raised a brow, “Is the marriage, isn’t it?” The older woman asked with a smile on her face and Scarlett nodded. “I was nervous too when I married your father. It felt like a step that was bigger than me, I was marrying the love of my life and we were going to reign together. It’s a lot, anybody would be scared.”

She wanted to retort and say that she wasn’t going to marry the love of her life, that they forced her into a marriage she never wanted, but kept quiet. She was tired of fights and there was no point in it anyway. Even if they gave her the chance to pick who she wanted, he was out of her league, or better, she was out of his league.

“Everything will be alright, little star,” she reassured, patting her curls gently. “And stop being sick, please. You don’t want to stain your wedding dress, right?”

Scarlet forced a laugh to roll out of her lips and then watched her mother walk out of the room with a last goodbye.

Left alone, she suppressed a scream when she felt a cramp at the left of her stomach and hugged herself into a fetal position to make it go away.

She felt soulless, dead inside, and the thought that nobody could see it made it clear that they didn’t care about her at all.

It would’ve taken Jaehyun one look to know that something was off, that she was screaming for help. Because as much as she tried to hide it, she needed the help, the real one, not gazes full of pity and fake reassurances.

She dreamed of him every night, begging him to stay, or to take her far away, hidden by stranger’s eyes, just the two of them, till the end of time.

But Jaehyun not only wasn’t there but also was never going to come back to her. And she had to accept it.

“No, no, that can’t be possible,” Scarlett mumbled, walking back and forth into the hospital room that was in the castle, fingers clasped in the roots of her hair, pulling at her curls, surely ruining the perfect pattern of the wash day.

“Your Highness, the blood test says it and the echography confirms it too,” the doctor said, handing her the rectangular photographs. “It’s rare, but it can happen that period still happen.”

She shook her head, and let silent sobs come out of her mouth, wrapping her arms around her body. “The King and the Prince don’t have to know,” she stated, still walking around feeling the tension buzz in her tense body.

“Why should-“ the doctor got stopped by the door swinging open, revealing the King and the Prince.

“What are we not supposed to know?”

Of course, they were right outside of the door, her privacy non-existing. She started shaking more and took some steps back, suddenly terrified by the two men in front of her. They were going to kill her if they found out.

“Nothing, I’m perfectly fine,” she said, trying to stop her limbs from shaking, with not much success.

Donghyuck lifted an eyebrow and stared at her. “Why are you shaking then?”

“I’m not,” she lied, her body betraying her words, her voice was trembling like a leaf trying hard to not fall down during the last days of fall and her palms were sweating.

“Scarlett,” Donghyuck sounded menacing and her instinct betrayed her once for all when her first reaction was to place her hand on her stomach, protecting her belly from him.

Donghyuck snickered, and looked at her up and down, “Don’t tell me...” he whispered, “you can’t be,” he added, incredulity in his voice.

“What’s going on?” The King asked, and she fell to the ground, pulling her body together, terrified they would hurt her, terrified they would hurt the baby. “What do you have there?” He asked pointing at the lucid paper in her hand.

“Nothing,” she said, hiding her hands behind her back.

“Scarlett, don’t make me lose my patience, it’s not valuable for a King.”

She glared at him, jaw clenched, and eyes fuming, “I have nothing that concerns you.”

Her husband-to-be turned around, facing the doctor who was staring at the scene with wide eyes. “I have to go,” he blurted, running outside of the room before the Prince could ask any questions and Scarlett felt the cold envelop her completely. She was alone now.

“Scarlett,” Donghyuck groaned, facing her once again, kneeling down to be at her level, his expression cold and distant. “Are you pregnant?”

She shook her head but her cries got louder as she tried to become smaller and smaller. It wasn’t supposed to end like this. It wasn’t supposed to happen, not like this, at least, not in those conditions.

A laugh rolled out of the King’s lips, “Pregnant, that’s a good one. She can’t be, she had never been alone with boys we didn’t allow,” he laughed but then stopped, turning to look at her when it clicked. No boys except one.

“Scarlett?” He called, his voice stern and deep. “Are you pregnant?”

She sniffed and nodded, there was no point in hiding it anyway.

Her father turned toward the Prince, trying to put the pieces together, “You two already?”

“No,” Donghyuck answered before he could finish the question, “She barely lets me close to her, and now it’s clear why,” he growled, looking down at her with an unfriendly, disgusted expression.

The King exhaled deeply, “Scarlett, I’m begging, please don’t tell me that’s Jaehyun’s child...”

She didn’t answer but looked down at the floor and that was already an answer.

“Your fucking bodyguard?” Donghyuck scoffed, voice high and loud, making her jump in shock. “You had a fucking affair with your bodyguard?” He screamed.

“Shut up,” she shouted back, not getting up from the floor, too afraid of getting hurt.

“I’m not shutting up, you fucked a commoner before our marriage and got pregnant with him. I picked you to be my Queen,” the Prince retorted, voice high and face red burning in anger.

“You said it, you picked me! I never picked you! I love him, not you.”

“That’s absurd,” the King said. “Guards, get her. The basement.” He ordered.

She turned around, looking at him in shock. “You’re putting me in the basement? I’m your daughter!”

“Who put shame on my name,” he replied, his stoic expression made the blood in her vein freeze and tears roll down her cheeks with no brakes.

“I’m still going to marry her,” Donghyuck announced, fixing his dress and regaining his composure as if nothing happened, “I don’t care about her, I just want to have deals with you.”

The King nodded and turned to face him.

“We’ll try to move the wedding as soon as possible,” he turned around to stare down at her stomach while the two bodyguards held her in place, ready to bring her away, “the baby has to look like yours.”

“I’m not marrying him,” she shouted, squirming under their hold, kicking her feet in the air.

“Take her away,” he last instructed ignoring her fights and her words, “And go find that man, he has to pay. Bring him alive, I’ll take care of the rest.”

“No!” She screamed at her father words, but he didn’t care. Nobody did. Nobody paid attention to her, her tired body, her tears streamed face, and her cries for help while she was being dragged into the last floor of the castle.

“Let go of me! I’m the Princess,” she whined, trying to convince the men to loosen their hold on her.

“King’s order,” they replied coldly, opening the door of one of the rooms in the basement, pushing her inside carelessly.

She let her tired body fall to the floor and crawled to the nearest corner to feel a little bit of warmth while she pulled her knees close to her chest, as far as she could trying not to press the baby. The belly wasn’t big but was there, and now that she knew it wasn’t just bloating she knew she had to take care of it.

She caressed her stomach, feeling the movements of the baby inside of her. She wanted this so bad, she had dreamt of this. It was supposed to be her happy moment, their happy moment. And yet, it only brought more tragedy to her life.

Jaehyun would’ve been so happy to know about this, he probably would’ve started to rant about all the things they had to buy and all the pretty clothes they could’ve got. But she was stuck there, and he was somewhere only God knew.

As she let her body fall asleep she called for Jaehyun, hoping he was far away now and her father’s guard would never find him.

She wanted to think he was happy and safe, that maybe he had found somebody that loved him and could give him everything he wanted. But he had to be far away from there for his safety.

If something had to pull them apart, she didn’t want it to be death.

The door of the small house opened, creaking as usual, and the scent of food and fire filled the man’s scent.

“Hey, Yoonoh, was the sea nice to you this time?” Another man’s voice resonated in the house, letting him know his presence in there.

The man laughed while he knocked his boots at the side of the door, “You’re coming with me next time, Johnny.”

“Sure, if you want my puke all over the ship then I’m there,” Johnny shouted from the kitchen, peaking his head back to stare at the man that was making his way into the room. The old ruined job suit was a little bit smaller than him and fitted him tightly, but the dark blue fabric still looked good on him.

“You just have to get used to it,” Jaehyun shrugged, stealing a loaf of bread from the kitchen counter, glancing at whatever the other older man was cooking on the stoves.

“Hey! Taeyong baked them for Jaemin,” the taller man shouted, hitting his hand playfully.

Jaehyun shrugged, and sat on the couch turning on the tv, not really looking for something specific, he just wanted to keep up with what he missed during the last four months overseas.

‘Royal wedding around the corner,’ the voice of the news announced with an excited tone, ‘The long-awaited wedding planned for January was suddenly moved to the next week. And if usually voices are fast, no rumours escaped the castle walls. Some suspect a sudden illness of the King, some others even an unplanned pregnancy, but nobody knows why. But why always over analyzes things? Maybe the two little birds are just too in love and can’t wait to seal the deal.’

Jaehyun grunted and shut the television with a groan, throwing the remoter carelessly on the small coffè table between the tv and the couch.

“Hey, man, what’s wrong?” Johnny questioned seeing his reaction as he leaned against the door frame, cleaning a plate with a consumed cloth.

“Can’t stand the rich,” he lied, standing from the couch, stretching his back with a yawn. Nobody there knew about his past, he even introduced himself with his birth name and not the one everybody used to call him with. He had to start brand new, in a completely different country and city.

The black-haired man nodded, chuckling lowly, “Same, and the royals are the worst,” he agreed.

Jaehyun nodded mindlessly and then announced, “I’m going to sleep, the rocking of the boat makes me have terrible nights.”

“I told you, you don’t get used to it,” Johnny replied and he just chuckled before disappearing inside his small room.

“A pregnancy,” Jaehyun scoffed as soon as the door closed behind him, “not even six months and she already forgot me.” He let his body fall on the bed, it was a little bit softer than the one he slept on the ships, but it was still uncomfortable. He couldn’t complain, though. This house was god sent, and so were the boys he found there. They gave him a place to stay and a job that kept his mind occupied. And they were also nice, so he found friends that were like him. That house was his normality, no impossible relationships and feeling so out of place.

His trail of thoughts got interrupted by his roommate coming into the room.

“Damn, I smell like fish, that’s why girls don’t come to me when I come back from the sea,” Jeno’s whine resonated in the small room while the young man closed the door behind him.

Jaehyun got up, standing on his elbow. “A shower and it’ll pass, we don’t deal with fish every single day, Jeno.”

“Yeah, but if you don’t shower the room will stink and we’re not going anywhere, Yoonoh,” the boy replied, rolling his eyes after looking up and down on him, his work clothes still on.

The older huffed throwing his head back, “Just let me be, I’m tired, I’ll go shower later.”

“’ Kay, fine, whatever you say,” Jeno said with an annoyed tone, grabbing his fresh clothes and heading out to the bathroom.

“Wait,” Jaehyun called and the younger stopped, looking at him with questioning eyes. “Are you going out tonight?”

“Yeah, why?” Jeno raised a brow.

Jaehyun shrugged, pressing his lips in a thin line, contemplating all the thoughts that were running in his head.

A smirk crept on Jeno’s face, “Oh, the grumpy old bear finally wants to go out and have some fun?”

“Oh shut up, Jeno,” Jaehyun screamed, grabbing the pillow under his head and throwing it at him.

“Then you better shower, that pretty face is not saving you from the shitty smell if you want to have fun.”

Jaehyun wanted to throw something else at him but the boy was faster at closing the old creaky door behind him.

The man sighed, letting his body fall on the mattress, groaning when his body met the stiffness of the surface, the only soft piece on the floor next to the door.

He couldn’t dwell on her forever, right? She had moved on so easily, why the hell was he still stuck on their story?

“You’re so fucking dumb, Jaehyun,” he muttered under his breath while he lifted his weight from the bed and searched for some fresh clothes in the small closet he shared with Jeno. He couldn’t believe he had spent all of his days thinking about her. It had been six months, he had to move on. Come to term that their story was never going to happen. If he wanted to try something probably he should’ve crazed out and kidnap her when he had the chance, but now, there was nothing left to do.

He was going to move on.

Scarlett was sitting on the chair behind his father’s wooden desk in the meeting room, listening to all the voices with her head low, too tired to fight and to pay attention to what they were saying.

“What do you mean you can’t find him?”

“His house is abandoned, no trace of him or anything he could’ve left behind.”

The King sighed, pressing his fingers against his temple, massaging in circles, and then addressed to his daughter, “Do you know where he is?”

“If I knew I wouldn’t be here,” she spat out, rising her face to stare back at him. “He left me without saying a word, I don’t even know his last name.” She partially lied, just hoping he wouldn’t use her to look for him.

Right before her father could retort, a knock on the door gained his attention, “Come in,” he ordered.

“Your Majesty,” a guard greeted, bowing politely, “we found something.”

“Go on,” the man on his fifty instructed.

“We asked villagers and an old lady told us something,” the young man stopped, eyes wandering on the girl in front of him.

“What?” The King urged, “we don’t have time, please.”

“Well, it’s nothing good,” the guard stammered, hands sweating and eyes drifting from the Princess, looking at the King.

The eldest in the room sighed heavily, slamming his fist on the expensive desk, “I don’t care, go straight to the point.”

The young man startled but then regained his composure, “Here, Your Majesty.” And handed him a printed photo, Scarlet leaned over to see something but couldn’t get it, her father snatching it from the guard’s hands too fast.

The King studied the picture, eyebrow furrowed and nose scrunched in confusion, “What is that?”

The guard hesitate for a while, shifting all the weight of his body on the tips of his feet nervously, and then gathered some courage to speak, “He died.”

“What?” Scarlett mumbled, turning around to look at the man. She felt her palms get wetter and her heart beat faster while she looked for any sign of joke on the guard’s face, but when she found any, she had to lean back on the chair to not fall on the ground.

“The old lady told us he had an unfortunate accident while he tried to help some other citizens during the alluvion of the last month. We went to the cemetery to make sure and found his tombstone. There’s just his name and a quote badly carved.”

Scarlett shook her head and tried to suppress the sobs, but she felt like puking and her heart was clenching in her chest.

“No, it can’t be possible,” she whispered, grabbing the photo from her father hands, looking at his name engraved into it.

A scary laugh rolled out of the King’s lips as he stood up, hand in his pockets and said, “Well, guess God solved this problem before me.”

“He wasn’t a problem, he was the love of my life!” She snapped, leaning over to face him.

“The love of your life that left you behind and now is buried six feet under?” Doghyuck taunted, right hand under his chin and a mocking smirk on his face.

She had to fight all she had to not slap him, beating up his pretty face. “He did it for me,” she replied, teeth gritted, and tone full of anger.

“Sure, whatever. I don’t care,” Donghyuck dismissed, waving his hands in the air, looking behind her. “Take her back, I don’t want to hear her cry for a man that wasn’t worth it,” he then order, as if that was his reign, his kingdom and his throne. As if that was his home.

“He was worth more than you, he died trying to help others, while you are selfish, watching your people die while you sit in your palace of gold. I hate you, I hate you, I hate –“

She had no time to finish when two pairs of hands grabbed her arms and dragged her outside of the room all the way to the cold basement chamber.

She let herself go to a hopeless cry and held tight onto her belly, the only thing she had left of him.

It can’t be possible, she kept repeating inside her head, it can’t be.

There was no way he was gone, completely.

She didn’t care that he wasn’t hers anymore, and truly never had been, but she wanted to know him alive, happy, showered with love. She needed to hold onto that image of him to carry on, to fight her own battle, to push into this cursed marriage she despised.

Because the pain of a break-up was bearable, but the weight his death carried was unsufferable.

She would’ve survived thousands of winters and summers without him by her side, but not a single day with him buried underground.

She at least had to say one last goodbye, to mourn on his body, feel the coldness of his skin, and the silence in his chest, no heartbeat or deep laughter ringing in his rib cage.

Scarlett rested her head against the wall, biting her lip to muffle the loud sobs that seemed to have no intention to stop coming out of her lungs and placing a hand on her chest, and the other on her belly, she let herself to a silent cry.

No, theirs wasn’t a love story, but she never imagine it would be a melodrama.

Her eyes already cried enough that night of six months before, she hoped no more tears would stain her face, not for him at least.

She wanted to put a stone on it, but not like this.

And now she had a child to carry, love and raise, and was a widow of a man she wasn’t married to, and her hand was promised to another.

She screamed thinking about when it all went wrong.

She should’ve never told him to leave, they should’ve run away together, get out of the town, and find somewhere to stay. Risking it all, and if it ended in blood it would’ve been their blood, not his only.

When she felt a cramp on her lower stomach she tried to calm down, taking deep breaths and stretched her legs; losing the baby was the last thing she needed right now.

“Shh,” she whispered, “It’s going to be alright,” she cooed, caressing her belly gently. But it was mostly to calm herself down and convince herself of it. “We’ll make it out of this mess,” she said, a shy smile creeping on her face when she felt the baby move inside of her.

Right when she was about to stand up, to drag herself to the small bed in the room, her gaze was drawn to the print the guard had brought to her father. She crawled to it, and grabbed it, staring at the stone, trying to find anything, anything, that could bring her hope and strength to move on.

“You’ll find me in the waves of change.” Was written right under his name, his birth and death date. And everything seemed normal if it wasn’t for the fact that the words ‘you’ and ‘waves’ were written in capital letters.

“If you ever need me, you know where to find me,” his voice ringed in her ears loud and clear. That was what he had promised her their last night, and he always kept his promises. What if all of that was made up? What if he already knew that somebody was going to look for him and he had to make all of his traces get lost?

“He’s not dead,” she whispered and smiled when she felt the feet of the baby press against her. “Yeah, you agree, baby?” She whispered sweetly, beaming a bigger smile, “Daddy’s alive and we’ll find him. Even if it's going to be the last thing I’ll do before I die.”

The street’s lampposts were lighting up the way, making the city look magical while the sounds of the chats and merchants trying to get people to buy something filled the air. The smell of mulled wine and freshly baked sweets filled Scarlett senses and she would’ve left herself get lulled by it if only she wasn’t running away with anywhere to go.

It was a reckless, stupid even, idea, she knew it, but she had to give it try. Especially after what she had found out.

“Last minute offer, everybody! Discount on everything you find on the stand.”

“Sweet lady buy some warm scarves for the winter, they’re made with my own hands.”

It was a usual Friday night, and as tradition, the market would stay open at night. So taking advance of the confusion and the big number of people buying or simply enjoying a peculiar night out, she got lost in the crowd, hoping nobody would notice her.

Even though she was covered from head to toe, she still felt out of place, her clothes were expensive and anybody could see it. So she tried to walk in the dark hoping her legs would take her out of there swiftly.

She had no idea where she was going, reaching the town where Jaehyun lived would’ve taken time, especially at night and with an almost six months baby inside of her. Yet, she kept walking, trying to fight the cold and the tiredness.

She was tempted to buy clothes there, but she knew that her father would’ve sent people to interrogate citizens, and no matter all the stories she could make up, they would’ve realized who she was. She had to find a vehicle to drive for the night, and then she would’ve thought about what she needed once she reached Jaehyun’s town, hopefully by the first morning light.

Before she could even notice, she reached the outside of the centre, voices and people finally starting to fade. The only things surrounding her were houses with lights off and some people going back inside from the bazaar.

“And now?” She asked herself, looking around. She couldn’t reach another town by foot, it was a death sentence she was placing on herself. And she couldn’t buy a car or anything of the kind.

Just before she could start to panic an idea hit her. Her father used to keep old carriages downtown in a secret garage, nobody guarding them because nobody knew the existence of that place hidden by trees and weeds.

She had to try.

Holding the coat around her body she started walking there, her body feeling a new rush of motivation, her feet walking faster toward her destination.

A smile crept on her face when she reached the garage and her theory was confirmed, there was nobody there.

When the sun started to show up behind the hills Scarlett had arrived where Jaehyun had spent his childhood. It was five in the morning and the town was already awake, mostly with people that were walking to work, so she opted to enter a bar to fix herself and then find a shop to buy new clothes and some food for the trip.

She parked the car and entered the closest bar of the small town, the scent of freshly baked croissant and coffè hit her nose and made her stomach, and baby, jump in excitement.

“You’ll have to wait for a moment, little one,” she smiled, looking down at her stomach, pushing into the bathroom door. She pulled out the scissors she brought with her and breathed deeply.

“You have to go,” she said, and gave a clear cut to her curls, flushing them into the toilet. By the time she was done a nice shoulder-length bob cut framed her face. “It’s not much, but it should be something,” she stated, staring at herself in the mirror, trying to adjust some strands that were longer. She had no time to shapeshift into somebody else, she didn’t bring any make-up from her runaway and had no time to buy it and apply it now.

Once she was done eating, she decided to go to the market and grab some food, clothes and medical stuff, just in case she needed it. There weren’t cameras anywhere so she felt safe but the tension that rushed in her body still didn’t calm down.

She was tempted to find the old lady the guards talked about, but she knew it was going to be impossible and risky. She would’ve followed her guts, all the way to the sea, where the most famous balneal town of the adjacent reign stayed.

But she needed to win some time over them. She was sure that they were looking for her already, and it wouldn’t have taken them long to arrive there. It was the first city where they would've searched for. So she headed to the river, abandoning the car not far away from the dock. She took a deep breath and threw the old clothes into the water, staring at the current carrying them away.

It was to fake her death, hoping it would’ve led them off tracks, at least for some time. But she was dead, that Scarlet they knew was gone, and she wasn't going to come back.

The wind was blowing against her back, making the coat stick to her body, while she stood there, watching the flood carry away the last traces of her old self.

“We’ll be safe and sound, love,” she mumbled, to her baby and herself, staring at the horizon. Somewhere down there, their future was waiting, and she knew it was a bright one.

She averted her eyes from the river and looked down at her belly, feeling the warmth spread in her chest; she hadn’t met her yet, but she already knew she would’ve broken her heart into million pieces for her and her safeness. Nobody was going to take this away from her. Nobody was going to rip her future from her hands.

“When is Mark going to be home?” Taeyong asked as he stirred the tomato in the pot, starting the base for the passata, not caring it was early in the morning.

“Two days, maybe three, we don’t know," Johnny answered, skimming through the pages of the weekly journal, "He's still in Woodale, right?”

“Yep, he hasn’t found what he’s looking for,” Doyoung responded, opening the fridge to pull out something to drink.

“Why are you so loud, it’s not even six in the morning,” Jaehyun huffed, entering the kitchen walls after being woken up by their chats, the walls of that house way too thin for his liking, and the smell of the sauce too strong after a night out.

“Good morning to you, too,” Johnny replied, biting the apple he was holding in his hand, pushing the chair aside to let Jaehyun take a seat.

Doyoung grinned, “Three days and you’re back on the road, or waves, I should say.”

“Ha, ha, very funny, Doie,” Jaehyun rolled his eyes, pressing his fingers against his temples to suppress the forming ache, “Wait, what? Three days?” He asked, eyes wide open looking at the men in front of him.

“Yeah, Mark should come back with the wood and Yuta told me it should take less than a day to fix the ship,” the brown-haired man at the stove answered, turning around placing another pot filled with ramen at the centre of the table.

“But we brought enough food and riches back at home,” he huffed, throwing his head back in exasperation.

“It’ll be Christmas soon, people are demanding. Renjun said that the fabrics won’t last for the holiday request,” the man added, filling the plates with the soup and handing them to Doyoung and Jaehyun.

“And I need more metals, too,” Johnny added.

“Ugh,” Jaehyun huffed, moving the food in his plate to cool it down. “Are you even sure we’ll make it back at home for Christmas?”

“Sure, it’s the first of October, you can make it at home for that time,” Taeyong reassured him, finally sitting at the table, too.

“Why do you need to be home? A secret girlfriend you don’t talk about?” Doyoung teased, after swallowing a spoon of the hot dish.

“No, no girlfriends,” he answered, way too soon and too nervously to appear normal.

“Or boyfriend, we don’t care,” Johnny appended, bending his head o the side, smiling at him.

“No, no boyfriend either. Nobody. I just want to walk on stable ground,” he sighed, shaking his head.

“You can work with me at the bakery if you don’t like to go overseas. When you first came here it seemed like you needed to get away from something and staying here wasn’t enough,” Taeyong proposed, and he sounded concerned, which made Jaehyun smile, it was nice to have somebody that cared for him.

“No I’m fine,” he reassured, lifting his head, “I just thought we could at least have a week of break, but the sooner we’ll leave the faster we’ll come back home. I want to be home for Christmas.”

“I’m really going to die, fuck,” Scarlett cursed, resting against a wall of a small town she couldn’t remember the name. The cold was trespassing the cheap fabric of her coat and the gloves weren’t enough to not make the bones of her hand creak. She was tired, being up for 48 hours and walking, driving, or being transported, with fear running in her veins wasn’t the greatest thing she did in her life.

Also, the news of her disappearance was everywhere, she didn’t reach her destination and she was terrified somebody would recognize her.

She was trying to find the strength to push her body up from the wall when a voice caught her attention, “I need to be at Seashore in two days, man, I need it now.”

Her eyes snapped and in a second she was behind the man that was standing outside this joinery, “Seashore?” She asked, looking at the man that seemed desperate, a beanie was pressed on his hair and his hands were covered with gloves, while his body was protected by a short coat.

The young man looked up and down on her and she shifted, hoping he didn’t recognize her, but he wasn’t from here, right? So it was safer to trust him, no? “Yeah, why?”

“Oh, I know it may sound weird, but I have to go there, too, and I don’t have a ride,” she beamed, awkwardly. Going back on public transport was way too dangerous now.

The boy smiled, “You heard her,” he turned to the man in the carpentry, “She needs a ride and I have to go back home. I need the wood, now.”

The middle-aged man rolled his eyes and sighed, “Fine, twenty minutes and I’ll be back to you.”

The man raised an eyebrow and then kindly smiled at her again, “I don’t know why they never want to do their job right,” he muttered and she giggled, “Oh, by the way, I’m Mark,” he greeted her, she grabbed his hand and didn’t say a word, but when he raised an eyebrow she understood that he wanted to know her name.

“Oh, yeah, my name, sorry. I’ve been walking for days and I’m tired,” she laughed it off, “By the way I’m Ivy,” she lied, trying to sound as convincing as possible but it turned that was no need to.

“That’s nice,” he exclaimed, “Why are you headed to my city?”

“I’m looking for an old friend,” she replied, putting her hands in the pocket of the coat, the bag with some water hanging on her wrist.

“Oh, cool,” he beamed, “want to grab something to eat before we come back here?”

“Is there a non-crowded place?” She asked, trying to hide her nervousness, “Crowds make me uneasy.”

“Sure, I know a place.”

The sky turned black swiftly after a big storm, the sun didn’t shine through clouds again and the day left its place to the night sky and the moon. It was calm outside, and the scent the rain left on nature relaxed her just enough to make her feel drowsy.

They had been walking all day, buying everything he needed to grab before going back home, and they have been driving out of town for at least fifteen minutes now. Silence filled his old car but it wasn’t awkward. Mark made her feel comfortable even by doing nothing. It was nice, and she felt a little bit better, and also warmer now that the heat of the vehicle warmed her body.

“Mh,” Mark coughed, breaking the silence, side-eyeing her from the driver seat, “not to be out of place but, are you, perhaps, pregnant?”

A chuckle left her lips, as she leaned against the glass to rest her head and look at him, “Is it that big under the coat?”

“Oh no,” he replied, honestly the belly was barely there, “it’s just that, you always have a hand placed on your tummy,” he noted, ears turning red and not from the cold.

“Oh,” she gasped, realizing she was also doing it now and pulled away. She didn’t even notice, it just came naturally. Probably feeling in debt for neglecting her pregnancy for so long, six months was a lot.

“That’s cute, actually,” he reassured her, looking at her for a few seconds before looking back to the road, “You’re protecting her.”

She turned to look at him with stupor and asked, “how do you know?” “Oh, it’s a baby girl?”

She nodded, smiling brightly, her eyes lighting up.

“Damn, that’s great,” he exclaimed, but then got serious again. “Why are you making such a trip in your conditions?”

“I’m fine, I’m just five months pregnant,” she stated, hand still caressing her belly. She couldn’t tell him the truth, no matter how trustable he seemed.

“Why are you alone, though? Was there nobody that could accompany you?”

She shook her head, “I’m tired, can I sleep?” She asked afraid questions would’ve gotten harder to answer. He seemed genuinely talkative but she couldn’t risk it. She was really tired and wasn’t so sure her brain would’ve been able to keep up with this act without slipping.

“Sure, I'd tell you to lay in the back seat but if I brake without a warning it’ll be more dangerous,” Mark said.

“No, don’t worry, I’m fine here.”

“Yes, Taeyong, I’ll be home in a day.” White clouds were coming out of Mark's mouth as he talked through the phone of a parking lot of a diner they found on the road. They had to stop to put gas in the car and to grab some food, but she could feel anxiety eat her up.

“No,” Mark answered, annoyance filling his tone, “Yeah, don’t worry,” he replied to something she couldn't hear. “Yes, fine. I’ll go with him. Bye.” He shut the call and then turned around, facing Scarlett who was patiently waiting for him.

“God, I’m sorry,” he exclaimed coming to her side, “My... well, he’s just my friend technically but sometimes he feels like my father and he’s getting on my nerves.”

“It’s fine,” she reassured, intertwining their arms, mostly for support, she was still tired, her feet hurt and she was more than sure they were swollen and her muscles were screaming in pain, “he just cares about you. Was he worried?”

“Yeah, he fears I’m not going to make it back in time,” Mark explained, opening the door of the small but cosy diner, walking toward the ordering counter.

“Are you in a rush?”

“Nah, he just wants our ship to leave.”

She furrowed, tilting her head to the side, “Are you a pirate?”

“Pirate? No, well, no, not really,” he stammered. “We just have business around town, but we need to go to the other side sometimes, raw material run low here.”

“Is it cool?” She asked while pointing at the menu to show him what she wanted to order.

“I don’t really do that much, I work with metals mostly, but apparently this time I have to go, too,” he rolled his eyes and then said the order to the waitress. “Go grab a table, I’ll come to you once I’m done, okay?”

Scarlett nodded and found a hidden corner, right under the TV that hung on the ceiling.

‘The researches of the Princess are still going on, nobody seems to know where she is. If somebody kidnapped her for revenge or if something more sinister happened. The investigators aren’t letting much information known, and the King seems to be hiding something but nobody knows what. Could her father have a reason to kill her? Or was it someone that got turned down that wanted to get their revenge? If anybody sees her or has any information the prize is of 50.000 lire...’

Her blood froze in her vein as soon as the words reached her ear. They put a price on her. They put a fucking prize on her.

She snapped up and walked behind Mark, grabbing his arm, startling him, “Mark, we need to go, now,” she commanded, pulling the sleeves of his coat.

“Why? The food is almost here,” he lamented visibly confused.

“Then let’s grab it swiftly and let’s go.”

“I was planning on sleeping here for the night,” he confided, not understanding her sudden change.

She shook her head, there was no way they were going to spend the night there. “No, your friend wants you home and I think we should be home too, let’s go,”

Mark left some money on the table and then grabbed the food while she dragged him out of the place.

“Why do you hate public spaces so much?” Mark whined, jumping in the car. “Why are you looking around as if somebody is ready to kill you?”

“I don’t hate them,” she replied, gulping nervously, after making sure nobody was in the car.

Mark sighed and started the engine, “Yes you do and now we have to eat dinner in the car.”

“I’m sorry, I just want to go to a place that is closer to home, I’m really nervous,” she said, playing with the wrapper of some food. “I’m pretty sure it’s the hormones that are acting up.”

“That’s why I wanted to sleep there, it’s a warm bed.”

“No, I want to find a place to stay, I feel like I’m on a getaway right now,” she mumbled, watching him with an apologetic look on her face.

Mark laughed but then stopped, “Why would you feel like you are in a getaway?”

“Just the feeling,” she stuttered, pressing her lips together.

“You are not in a getaway, right? I don’t have a criminal in the car?”

“Oh Lord, no,” she laughed but a heavy lump formed in her throat. If somebody caught them he could be sentenced for God’s knows what, and he had no idea who she was. He was genuinely helping her and she was dragging him into this hell. “I just want to have a place to call home,” she added, trying to shrug the feeling off.

Mark looked at her with his side view and then shook his head, “You’re not looking for an old friend, aren’t you?”

She shook her head, “Yeah, also, but I just want to find a place that feels like home, in the most cliché, tooth-rotting way,” she giggled, pushing some strands of hair out of her face, tugging the shorts lock behind her ear.

The man hummed, tapping his fingers on the wheel, “Not a nice place where you come from?”

“No, not really,” she grumbled. She felt so ungrateful knowing that people would’ve killed for that life, for everything she had growing up, but material things are simply not enough to fill the holes of love and affection. And she felt betrayed, she really never expected that her father could be so selfish, and full of hate and anger.

“If you don’t find a place or need somewhere to stay while looking for your friend, you could stay with me, by the way.”

“Really”? Her eyes sparkled while she stared at him in disbelief.

“Sure. I mean, there’s quite a lot of us, but I’m sure we’ll find a place for you.”

“You’re so nice for me, I don’t deserve it,” she said.

“No, you’ve been through so much, it’s the less I can do for you.”

“You don’t know me, though. I’m a total stranger and you’re doing so much.”

Mark smiled, “That’s what people do, right? They help each other.”

“Yeah, I guess.“

“Don’t worry. Also, we need to decide a name for the baby, I want to be her favourite uncle.”

The first genuine and carefree smile crept on her face as she let her head fall against the headboard of the seat. “Yeah, it has to be a hopeful one.”

The night passed swiftly and the sun was shining on Seashore. Scarlett looked around, mesmerized by the pretty houses of the town, painted in blue and white, with murals of mythical sea creatures and precious stones as tiles of the rooftops.

“It’s so pretty here,” she exclaimed in awe, turning to look at Mark that smiled at her genuine enthusiasm.

“Never been here before?” He asked, tilting his head.

She shook her head. She had travelled different reigns, but only seeing the castles and a very little of the towns. Also, her Father didn’t engage much with this country, so she had probably been there when she was a child and couldn't remember anything of it.

“it’s nice, you’re going to love it here.”

“I really hope so,” she replied, sitting back in place, while the city run out on the window pane. The town was perched on the cost, and they started to go higher and higher, and between the small buildings, the sea was visible in the distance.

“And here we are,” Mark exclaimed, taking a turn entering a small road, the street was dissimulated and a small house appeared at the end of the road. It was made of stone just like the others but the white was closer to a grey, and the blue dye of the wooden window was completely faded, the paint full of cracks. The small patch of green in front was burned and the inside was hidden by white curtains. “It’s not much, I know,” Mark paused, stopping the car and turning to look at her. “But it’s home.”

She nodded, pressing her lips in a thin line, looking around, noting that it was isolated from the centre and the main road. “Do you live here alone?”

“No, I share this house with my friends.”

“Are they fine with me staying here for a while?” She asked, worried they didn’t want her, but even more worried they would send her back. Based on what she heard, they needed money, and what's an easier way to get them than sending back a runway Princess?

“They will. Especially Taeyong, I’m sure he’ll love you.”

She smiled, hoping for the better, and followed him toward the door.

“Mark!” A man exclaimed, pulling Mark in his embrace. “You came back earlier,” he noted, checking if the man was fine and there were no other urgent reasons behind this surprise. Then his eyes landed on the woman behind him and widened as he stared at her up and down. “And brought company with you.”

Scarlett kept quiet, breathing deeply, looking everywhere but the man.

“Yes, she’s Ivy and got nowhere to go, I told her she could stay here for a while,” Mark explained, and she thanked him for presenting her because she had almost forgotten her fake name.

The brown-haired man smiled, his big eyes lightened up, “I’m Taeyong,” he greeted and then snapped out of the first meeting awe. “What are you doing outside, it’s freezing, come in.” He gestured and moved to the side to let them in.

“It’s not big,” he stated, turning around to point at the small house. The hall was almost immediately connected with the living room, just a small wall dividing them, “but we have a small room for you to stay.”

“Oh, don’t worry for me. It’s going to be just for tonight, I’ll find a place to stay by tomorrow,” she reassured, smiling at him, fully taking in the living room. There was a couch, a coffee table and a TV, underneath it there was a modest fireplace and some shelves with books and some plants were hanging on the wall. Unlike the outside, on the inside, there was a lot of wood and made the place look cosier and warmer.

Mark looked at her with a worried look, “Are you sure you can do this by yourself?”

“Do what?” Taeyong asked, confused.

“Oh, I have to find an old friend of mine.”

“I wasn’t talking about that,” Mark said, pulling the beanie off of his head, revealing his black hair.

“I have to,” she said bitterly. If she couldn’t find Jaehyun she was screwed, honestly. And only now she realized how reckless her decision had been. She jumped in headfirst without looking. But she couldn’t weigh on their shoulders, she had to find a way to survive alone, hoping nobody would recognize her.

“I’m confused,” Taeyong mumbled, walking into the kitchen followed by the two. The room was nice, walls painted in white, like the other furnishings that were useful for the room.

Mark looked at her, asking for permission to tell him about the baby but she didn’t want to give out more information to strangers.

“It’s nothing, seriously. No need to worry,” she smiled, gaze meeting with Taeyong’s, who simply nodded.

“If I knew I would’ve prepared something, but I have nothing hot to eat,” the man pouted, opening the white fridge, searching for something to prepare last minute.

“No problem, I’m not hungry,” she reassured. She felt nauseous and just wanted to sleep on a real bed.

“You two need sleep,” Taeyong stated, staring at the eye bag under their eyes, closing the fridge with a loud noise. “Mark, show her the last room at the end of the corridor, the bed needs to be made but the bedding is on the last drawer of the closet.”

Mark hummed in response, but before turning around he stopped and asked, “Where are the others?”

“Working.”

“Even Jeno and Yoonoh?”

“Yeah, Johnny needed help at the garage and they are the strongest ones. Also, Yuta told them to pass by the port later to see something, if everything goes as planned they’re leaving tomorrow morning.”

Mark nodded and then led her to her temporary room.

“I’ll just sleep for a while and then go out to look for him and a place to stay,” she said once they were done fixing the bed.

“Don’t worry, you’re not a burden at all, also for at least a month three of us won’t be here, so no need to worry.”

“Yeah, but I really need to find this person,” she replied, shifting her weight on her feet.

Mark smiled, he wanted to ask if he was more than a friend, maybe the father of the child but didn’t want to be out of place. “Do you need help?”

“No, thanks, I’ll do it myself.”

Mark nodded and then opened the door. “Get some sleep, if you need anything, I’m outside.”

She nodded and then laid on the bed, closing her eyes and letting out a soft whimper finally feeling her body relax. The bed wasn’t the softest she had slept on but it was a bed, better than the seat she spent the last days crumbled on.

The tension she pent up exploded and she felt her cheeks get wet, a rush of adrenaline run in her body and her muscles flexed. She was finally somewhere safe, in a house, on a bed, and away from the cold of the October weather.

“We’ll be fine,” she mumbled, turning to the side, wrapping her arms around her belly, “we’ll be fine.”

“She’s been sleeping all day, is she fine?” Taeyong asked Mark while they, he, was preparing dinner. The others came home in the late afternoon and stayed in their rooms. Yoonoh and Jeno enjoying the last day on earth and not at the mercy of the waves.

“She was breathing when I checked her, guess she’s just exhausted,” Mark reassured him, laying the table with the pottery.

“Why did you bring her here, though?” Taeyong asked, tasting the food to see if he had to add salt or other seasonings.

“She helped me convince the carpenter to give me the wood in time, and she needed a ride. She had nobody, and she’s super nice.”

“Who are you talking about?” Johnny asked, entering the room with sleepy eyes, he fell asleep without realizing as soon as he got home and it had screwed him.

“Oh, just a girl I met on the road.”

“Uh, uh,” Johnny whistled, “is she nice?”

“Stop it, not like that,” Mark answered, face on fire as he pushed the taller man away.

“What’s going on?” Jaehyun asked, entering the kitchen.

“Markie found love,” Johnny cooed, jokingly hitting Mark’s arm.

“That’s not true! She’s just a... friend, I guess.”

Jaehyun raised an eyebrow, “Why are you as red as the tomato then?”

“It’s Johnny’s fault,” he defended. “No seriously, though. She’s also taken.”

“Damn, I was hoping for a fairytale,” Johnny whined and Jaehyun chuckled.

“Yuta wants to leave this night, by the way,” Jaehyun announced out of nowhere, taking a seat on the table.

“Tonight?” Taeyong asked widening his eyes, neck snapped back so fast it was surprising it didn’t break.

Jaehyun hummed, “Tomorrow it's predicted a storm, he wants to be on the other side before it.”

“When?”

“At midnight at the port,” he answered, eating the meat from the dish, “Why do you look sad, Yong? Didn’t you suggest leaving as soon as possible?”

The older man sighed, “I don’t like it when you leave at night.”

Jaehyun rolled his eyes, “We always travel at night.”

“Can I still be worried?”

“Yes, Dad,” the younger answered playfully.

“Oh, shut up,” he huffed, pulling the chair out to sit next to Johnny.

“By the way, who’s coming with us?” He asked, pointing at him and Jeno.

“Not me, I’m not moving from here,” Johnny announced, throwing his hands up in the air.

“I’ll come with you,” Mark replied.

“Great, then let’s finish here and leave,” Jaehyun said getting up from the chair and going to his room to grab his baggage.

Taeyong watched him with a confused expression and then asked, “Is he in a rush?”

“There’s nothing to watch on tv now that it's broken,” Johnny laughed, filling his glass with water.

“Again?” Mark asked in disbelief, it was the fifth time it had stopped working during the last three months.

“Yeah, the storm ruined the cables,” Taeyong sighed, letting his head fall against the palm of his head.

“No money to fix it?” Mark inquired, already knowing the answer.

“No, the window upstairs also broke and a part of the roof fell,” he said plastering a forced smile on his face. It was tiring, every day something would go wrong in that house.

“Do you need me to stay?”

Johnny waved his hand and answered, “Nah, I’ll fix it, don’t worry.”

Mark nodded, and then finished his plate. “Should I bring her some?”

“Go get ready, I’ll bring it to her,” Taeyong replied.

“She’s here?” Johnny asked with his mouth open wide.

Taeyong nodded, pouring himself a glass of wine.

“This house became a shelter, what the...”

“Shut up, she’s lovely.”

“I have to meet her.”

“Tomorrow, let her sleep.”

The storm on the outside woke her up, the lightning and thunders were loud, and the tree branches whistling didn’t help.

She raised her upper body and eyed the clock on the wall, 9:00 a.m.

She cursed, realizing she slept all day and night.

Dragging her heavy body out of the door, she looked for Mark in the house, but nobody seemed to be there. Panic settled in her body again while the worst-case scenarios started playing in her brain. Hearing the noise of the door opening with a thud she turned toward it and let out a scream when she saw a man she didn’t know enter the house. Her back hit the couch and she brought a hand on her belly in protection.

“Goddamn, you scared me!” The man exclaimed, hand placed on his chest. And she looked at him with a confused expression.

“I scared you?”

“Johnny, for heaven’s sake would you get in, I’m soaked,” Taeyong’s known voice reached her heart and she peaked to see his wet figure stand behind the tall man.

“Oh, you’re awake,” he noted, posing a package on the cabinet next to the entrance. “Why are you on the floor?” He asked, finally taking in the situation. “And why are you holding your stomach? Did you hurt her?” Taeyong asked, hitting Johnny.

“Ouch! I didn’t do anything!”

She got up immediately, fixing her large clothes and shaking her head.

“No, I just got scared,” she smiled.

“Have you eaten?”

She shook her head.

“Go in the kitchen, I’m sure you’ll find something you’ll like,” Taeyong encouraged but she didn't move, and simply stood still looking around.

“Mark left,” Johnny answered her silent question. “He actually came to say bye but you were far gone.”

“God, I slept so much,” she murmured, feeling embarrassed, but she didn't even notice, her body needed those good hours of sleep.

“Mark told us the trip was tiring,” Johnny affirmed.

“Yeah, it was,” she said, nervously biting her lower lip.

“Eat something with us, we bought some new clothes for you,” Taeyong said, handing her the bag.

“Oh,” she slurred, “you didn’t have to, really.”

“But you have no baggage with you,” Johnny stated, glancing at her up and down.

She shifted on the spot, feeling his gaze get a little bit too intense, and pulled the clothes out, they were actually really pretty, but a little bit too small. They would’ve fit, but they would’ve shown the belly that was growing bigger day by day. She wasn't even sure why she wanted to hide it, maybe it was because it gave her a fake sense of protection? Probably. Or she didn't want them to look at her with compassion.

“If you don’t like we can buy you new ones,” Taeyong proposed, analyzing her expression.

“No, they’re really pretty. I love them,” she smiled. “I’ll pay them back as soon as I’ll find a job.”

“You don’t have to, it’s a gift.”

“But,” she tried to retort.

“No buts,” Johnny stopped her. “Actually we didn’t even pay for them,” he confessed and she widened her eyes.

A laugh rolled out of the taller man’s lips, “We didn’t steal them, one of our friends has a tailoring, Taeyong used to work there, too.”

She sighed in relief, and eat a piece of the chocolate biscuit the other man offered.

Taeyong looked at her, she seemed frightened and anxious, probably she started this journey without really thinking about the consequences. She had nothing with her and living without money and home was difficult. He pondered a few things before making the offer. She seemed nice, and since he started working in his bakery, Renjun had been struggling to do all the work alone. “Do you want to work there?”

“What? Suddenly?” She raised her face to look at him, wiping the crumbs of the sweet that left on her lips.

“Yeah, Renjun needs help,” he explained, "he owns the place."

She considered the offer, it didn't sound bad but she had no experience. The few curses she took at the castle weren't enough to head straight into a started business. “But I have no idea where to start,” she admitted.

“You can stay at the front desk.”

“No,” she screamed, too loudly and too quickly. “I mean, mhh, I don’t really like be in contact with people.”

The men shared a look but then shrugged, “Are you a fast learner, then?”

“No, I’ll find something, don’t worry. Thank you for this,” she said, grabbing the clothes, “As soon as the storm is over I’ll leave, I’ll find my friend and a job.”

“We need the red velvet, as soon as possible,” Renjun cursed under his teeth as he nervously walked up and down the back of the store, a tape measure around his neck, glasses on top of his nose and messy hair framing his face.

Scarlett chuckled, “I’m sure we can make the green one trend, too.”

“No, I’ve tried so hard, they only want the red for Christmas,” Renjun exhaled, clearly exasperated by the approaching of the holidays. They were still far away, it was the first Friday of November, but they had to be ready. The ladies in town went crazy over matching dresses with their husbands, and the classic colour for the celebrations was red. Nobody wanted to look like a pine tree, but she was convinced of making it change.

“Maybe we can try a new combination, why don’t we add red details using the leftovers and discount the prizes for the green dresses?” She proposed, laying the scissor on the table after she finished cutting a sleeve for a dress she was working on. "Also the dark green velvet is incredibly classy, we could also risk it with some black details. I'm sure they'll love it."

Renjun nodded, trying to imagine the final results. She could create beautifully designed dresses with nothing so why not? “Fine, I’m trusting you, okay?”

“I won’t let you down,” she smiled.

Her initial plan had no success. After leaving Mark’s house she wasn’t able to find Jaehyun, he was nowhere to be found. His name wasn’t registered in the town citizens, and she never crossed him in the streets. Also, she couldn’t find a place to stay, every hotel asking for documents she couldn’t show.

So with her head low and tail between her legs she came back to Johnny and Taeyong who welcomed her happily and cried all her tears, revealing a half-truth of her story. She tried to be strong, but mourning Jaehyun’s was more painful than she thought.

But she wasn’t alone, the boys were super supportive since she let them know the truth. It was great to have two people by her side, they were lovely and never left her alone.

Taeyong had taught her so many things to fill up her days and don’t make her think about her lover. They usually spent the morning cooking, mostly baking. Occasionally they would go to the market to buy fruits and fresh products, and she found out she was good at negotiating with merchants, convincing them at lowering the price to get some more. It still felt off for her, even if there was normal, she felt like a scammer, they were struggling to make it to the end of the month, a problem she never faced in her life, but that was in the past, now she was just like them.

After lunch, when Johnny would come home from the morning shift, she would help him fix something that broke. And she learned that in that house something would break almost every day. It was funny, and she learnt new things, even if Johnny was a little bit overprotective and preferred she would just watch and keep him company.

It was also surprising how much they helped her with her pregnancy, the child wasn’t theirs, and yet, they were never grossed out by any aspect of motherhood. Taeyong would help her keep her hair behind when she would vomit, which happened frequently the first two weeks when she accepted Jaehyun’s fate. Johnny massaged her swollen feet after a long day up. They were always extremely careful at not eating something that would trigger her, for example, eggs, they were the worst. Sometimes they would even sleep with her when the storms were too scary and didn’t let her rest, or when the thoughts about Jaehyun got too loud and she couldn’t shut them down.

And then there was their baby. The baby was the only thing that pushed her over. She was the only thing that was left of their love and she was intentioned to give her everything.

And now she was helping Renjun in his little shop downtown. She had happily discovered to have a talent for sewing and got along pretty soon with the man her age.

Renjun was a little bit taller than her, just a few centimetres more, had brown hair and eyes, and a sassy sparkly personality. He was super careful with her, always making sure she would never pass the limit given her conditions, but she felt fine.

She had finally gained some weight back, her cheeks were full again and also her belly exploded, reviling a beautiful round stomach holding a seven months, well now almost eight months, baby.

Another fortunate expect of it all was that nobody in town seemed to care for the disappearance of the Princess of the adjacent Kingdom. Mostly because, rumours she heard, her Father had announced her apparent death. She was a little bit sad about it, mostly because of her mother, and the thoughts that her kingdom would have no heirs now, but she finally felt happy. Jaehyun’s death still hurt like hell, but at least he never ended in her father clutches. He was in a better place, and she would’ve made sure to keep his memory alive with her love.

“Have you decided how you’re going to call her?” Renjun brought her out of her thoughts and she shook her head.

She never thought about a baby name, her and Jaehyun never went that far with their daydreaming to ever think about one.

“Not really,” she admitted, drawing the shape of the body on the fabric with the white pencil, “Mark wanted to give her a name.”

Renjun scoffed, “He better move to bring the fabric we need and pick a name before she sees the light of the world.”

Scarlett laughed, “We still have time, I have almost two months to go.”

As a joke of destiny, the baby decided that breaking every rule was the best thing she could do.

It had passed just one week when Scarlett felt a painful cramp down her uterus and felt a pain in her belly and lower back and then her thighs get wet.

“No, not now baby,” she mumbled, laying against the kitchen counter. It was barely four a.m and she was up because she couldn’t sleep, the storm outside gave her no peace.

“Jesus Christ, love, can’t you just stay inside for some more?” She cursed, gritting her teeth, trying to hold on to something, and then screamed in pain when other contractions started to hit her.

“Taeyong! Johnny!” She shouted, throwing her head back in pain. Praying that one of them could help her with this, she couldn’t go to a hospital, she really couldn’t.

When they entered the room a scream slipped out of Tayeong’s mouth.

“Tell me it’s pee, please,” he gawked.

“God, no, why would I do that here!” She screamed, sweat pearling her forehead as her breaths got shorter.

“You’re not giving birth, right now, right?”

“I don’t know, ask her, not me,” she retorted, groaning in pain as she felt her legs buckle underneath her.

“She is,” Johnny said.

“Wasn’t it due by the end of December?”

“Yong, she walked for miles it’s a miracle she didn’t push it out months ago when she arrived here.”

“Oh shut up and help me,” she shouted, trying to hold herself up.

“I’ll get the car,” Johnny announced, turning around to walk outside.

“No,” she stopped him, “No car, no hospital, we’re doing it at home.”

“At home?” They shouted in unison, staring at her in disbelief.

“We aren’t doctors, love,” Johnny told her, a little bit of irony mixed with panic in his voice.

“I can’t go to the hospital, please,” she cried, hoping they wouldn’t dig further.

“Call Kun,” Taeyong said, finally stepping closer to her, to guide her on the couch.

“Who’s this?” She asked before screaming again when another contraction hit.

“A friend of ours, he’s specialized in this, I guess,” he mumbled, feeling more anxious than her. Why didn't she want to go to the hospital, it would've been much easier considering she was also premature.

“You guess?” She yelled, snapping her eyes wide open.

“He’s still better than me and him, Ivy,” the man answered, helping her sit down on the sofa.

“Fuck, I hate this so much, ugh,” she growled, her fingers digging into Taeyong’s wrist, he wanted to scream in pain but then realized it was nothing compared to what she was going through so kept quiet.

“Listen, it’s very cliché, but I need you to breath with me, okay?”

She nodded, squeezing her eyes shut trying to focus on her heartbeat and not on the lacerating pain she felt between her legs. “Fuck, it’s like I’m being split open,” she bawled.

“And she’s not coming out yet,” Johnny remarked.

“Johnny!” They shouted at the same time glaring at him.

“Sorry, just, you know what, I’ll wait for him out,” he said grabbing the knob of the door.

“No, it’s raining, stay here, bring down some towels and covers, we’ll need them,” Taeyong ordered before paying attention to her again. “Can you track the contractions?”

“I don’t even know my name, what do you want me to do?”

“Nothing,” he shook his head, “Just hold my hand and breath, keep a steady pace,” he reassured, tucking her hair behind her ears and breathing with her. He would've tried to do it himself. If he remembers correctly they should be every ten to five minutes and last 30 seconds, and well, when they start to get closer, good luck to them if Kun wasn't there.

Johnny skipped to the living room and placed a towel under her, where liquid and blood was still dripping, and then posed the others on the coffee table.

“I can’t do this, I can’t,” she cried throwing her head back while her chest raised incredibly fast.

“No, you can, I know you can,” Taeyong tried to calm her down, humming softly.

“It’s going to kill me,” she cursed, biting her lips making it bleed when she felt another contraction hit, leaving her gasping, “I’m going to die,” she sobbed when the spasm calmed down again.

“You won’t die,” Johnny retorted, “Kun will be here soon.” He walked over to the window to see if somebody was there but couldn’t make out a single soul. “Fuck, isn’t there something we can do to help her?”

“Do I look like a doctor to you, Johnny?” Taeyong replied, staring at him, “I've never done this before.”

“Maybe,” she mumbled, “Fuck, I can, I can, God, push,” she stuttered, tears were rolling down her face that was now completely wet and she felt like her heart was burning. Fuck whoever calls this the miracle of life, miracle my ass. She thought.

Taeyong widened his eyes, “You want to push now?”

“And what do I have to wait? I can’t do this anymore, do you know how painful, fuck, fuck, damn,” she screamed, instinctively closing her legs.

"Is she even ready to push?" Johnny asked, "Shouldn't she be dilated or something?"

"Can you feel something's different?" Taeyong asked her, but she simply shook her head, not able to let out a single word. Yes, the contractions were getting closer.

“Johnny come here,” Taeyong called and then faced her, “we’ll get her out of there, okay?”

“Kun?” Mark asked, when he saw the man get out of the car after parking in front of their house, they had arrived soon after him. “What are you doing here?”

“Assisting a birth,” he replied, knocking on the door, hearing a “coming” from inside.

“A birth?” Mark, Yuta, Jeno and Yoonoh shouted.

“She’s already due?” Mark asked in surprise.

Kun shrugged, Johnny had been extremely vague on the phone. “I don’t know, guess it was an emergency.”

“Johnny where the fuck are you!” Taeyong screamed, and then the door opened, reviling the tall man behind it.

“Where is she?” Kun asked, surpassing the tall man, making his way inside without wasting other time.

“Couch,” Johnny answered right away, pointing to the room beside the hall. “You arrived for the big event, we are also obstetrics now,” Johnny greeted the four men at the door with a smile on his face, moving to the side to let them in.

They were visibly tired, dark cicles under their eyes, heavy luggage and other boxes left next to the door and their working clothes not heavy enough for the cold of November.

“Is she the girl you brought home?” Jeno asked Mark, turning to look at him.

“Yeah,” Johnny answered instead.

“She’s still here?” Mask asked, just now realizing she was the girl he had met, not somebody else, and that she was giving birth in their living room.

“The man she was looking for died, she had nowhere to go,” Johnny explained, handing them a blanket each to warm from the cold.

“So she was looking for the father,” Mark mumbled, more like a personal consideration.

“Yeah, she was.”

“Well, let’s say goodbye to the couch,” Yuta said, peeking his head over the small wall that divided the two rooms.

“Is she fine?” Jaehyun asked, and the one answering was directly her with a curse leaving her lips followed by a high pitch scream. The man stiffened in his place. It couldn’t be.

He surpassed Johnny pushing him to the side and reached the living room where the woman, Kun and Taeyong were staying.

“Scarlett,” he mumbled, not believing what he was seeing with his own eyes. He rubbed his eyes thinking he was just tired and having hallucinations but once he opened his eyelids again she was still there.

She didn’t open her eyes, too caught up in the pain and believing it was another one of her dreams. “Not now, fuck,” she groaned, trying to push the thought of Jaehyun out of her mind, squeezing Taeyong’s hand tighter.

“Her name’s actually Ivy, and we should leave her some privacy,” Johnny chimed. “Scarlett’s nice, though. She could name the baby that.”

“It’s a girl?” Jaehyun asked with a smile on his face, turning toward the older man and Johnny nodded.

“Let’s go, there’s already Taeyong there,” but Jaehyun didn’t listen and walked toward her.

“Scarlett,” he called again, his weight hollowing the couch.

“Yoonoh, please, she’s trying to give birth here,” Kun warned, “Keep pushing, like this,” he then said to her.

“It’s Ivy, by the way,” Taeyong whispered, furrowing at Jaehyun’s actions of caressing her cheek.

“No, it’s Scarlett,” as if something broke, Scarlett actually heard that name and his voice and her eyes sprung open.

“Jaehyun,” she whispered, breath faltering for a moment before another piercing pain made her bend in two. She felt overwhelmed, and cried louder, between the pain, and the sight of the man, not able to tell if she was dreaming again or if it was real. What was he even doing there? And also Taeyong never hinted at somebody named like him.

“Shh, love, it’s fine,” he whispered, moving her hair back, his hand intertwining into hers.

Strange looks were shared in the room, nobody understood what was going on, but they all had better things to worry about, she was giving birth to a barely eight months baby in a tiny living room, their lives were on the line, the rest came after.

And Scarlett didn’t care if her brain was making things up again, it was fine because the idea of having Jaehyun by her side made her feel a little bit better.

“I need you to push, okay?” Kun repeated, “You two, keep her legs open, she’s closing them because of the pain but we’re almost there, I promise it’ll be over soon.”

Scarlet nodded, tightening her hold around Jaehyun and Taeyong’s hands, and letting her head fall back as she pushed with all the strength she had. A piercing scream filled the room when she felt the head of the baby cross her walls and she choked on the sobs.

“She’s here, she’s here,” Kun chanted, helping her, gently grabbing the baby head and shoulders as she kept pushing and pushing. It felt like the longest moments of her life but when cries filled the room a never felt before sensation washed over her. It felt like a little ray of sun peeking through the grey clouds, rare and bright and beautiful. She was here, their baby was here.

Everybody smiled in relief and finally started to breathe normally again.

Scarlett smiled through the tears, letting her body relax against the stained couch, loosening her hold on the men’s hands.

“I’m so proud of you, love,” Jaehyun whispered, letting their foreheads touch. She gulped and let go of Taeyong’s hand, reaching for Jaehyun, knowing he would’ve disappeared in a cloud as soon as she touched him. But it didn’t happen, he was there, skin and bones.

“You’re real, you’re alive,” she sobbed, thumb caressing his cheek.

“You thought I was dead?”

“Yes, I cried so much, you have no idea,” she admitted, pressing her lips together to prevent more sobs to spill out.

“No, love, I’m right here,” he reassured, pulling her closer to him, still giving Kun the space to cut the umbilical cord and separate the baby from the mother.

“Give me a towel,” Kun asked, after one minute passed, only then cutting the cord to make sure more fluid would’ve flowed to the baby, helping in the prenatal birth. Kun delicately wrapped a clean towel around the baby and then handed it to Taeyong, turning around to prepare other things he needed.

Scarlett lifted her head and opened her arms, waiting for Taeyong to hand her the baby.

“She’s beautiful,” he mumbled, with a smile on his face, looking from the newborn being to her mother.

She smiled back and brought her close to her, the blood staining her skin and dress.

“Hi, angel,” she cooed, pulling down the fabric of her dress to feed her and finally make the scream quiet down.

“Have you picked a name?” Jaehyun asked, brushing her hair back, and holding the small hand of the baby in his.

She shook her head, “Mark wanted to pick,” she eyed the man at the corner of the room that was watching with shining eyes and a big smile on his face.

Jaehyun raised a brow, “And we’re not letting him choose, right?”

She laughed, “Don’t be so harsh with him,” she joked. “Do you have one?”

“Eunbi,” he answered, staring at the window.

“Why?”

"Eun means grace, and bi means rain," he explained, staring back at the baby, “She came with the rain, and I want her to always have a storm inside of her but with grace."

Scarlett smiled fondly as she stared at his gaze full of love while those words slipped out of his mouth, it had been so long since they have last seen each other, he had no idea of this baby, and here he was, acting as if he waited this moment since the first moment they met.

“Jeong Eunbi,” she repeated, “I love it.”

“Good,” he beamed, leaving a peck on her forehead.

“I need help from everybody here,” Kun interrupted the romantic moment, gaining everybody attention. “The next 48 hours are going to be crucial for the both of them.”

“We’ll help you,” Mark replied, no matter how tired they were for the drive back home. There was no use trying to sleep anyway. Things like that never happened in their boring life so it was exciting.

“Good, I have things to grab from my car, I’ll be back soon,” he stated before leaving.

“So, care to explain what’s going on?” Johnny asked the two, sitting in front of them.

“Do you remember the man I cried over for two months?” She asked and both him and Taeyong nodded, “Well, it was him.”

“What?” Taeyong exclaimed, feeling exhausted from the birth, almost as if he gave it, and this new information.

“Still doesn’t explain why you’re not calling with your real names,” Johnny added, tilting his head to the side.

Scarlett sighed, and looked down at the baby, “We left those people behind, maybe one day we’ll tell you the story, but for one, let’s focus on Eunbi,” she responded.

“Eunbi? That’s the name?” Mark said, excited, “That’s beautiful! I love it,”

“Why are you so excited, not even as if she’s yours,” Yuta noted, raising a brow at him.

“Hey! I was Cupid, I brought you here! See, you should love me for that,” Mark squealed in excitement.

Soft laughs erupted in the room, but it was true, destiny really pulled them together and its name was Mark.

“Are you sure your father won’t find you?” Jaehyun whispered, his hand caressing her cheek softly. The bed was way too small for two but they couldn’t get a bigger one, the crib and the other stuff they had to buy for Eunbi costed too much money already so they had to settle for that. But it was nice, being close to each other wasn’t a problem, and it was a patch to the missed times together.

She sighed, snuggling closer to him. “I’m not sure,” she admitted. “I heard they believed in my death but I can’t be sure about it.”

“You faked your death?” Jaehyun asked, shocked at the news. They didn’t have much time to catch up on the times they had been separated. The first month with the baby had been... intense.

“Yeah, all to find you, and I wasn’t even sure you were alive.”

Jaehyun chuckled, playing with the strands of the bang she had freshly cut. “So you truly love me,” he joked, smirking and raising a brow.

“I carried your child through two countries just to get to you, sweetie,” she reminded him, pushing his chest playfully. “Sound like a test the Gods would submit to mortals to get to their loved ones.”

A deep laugh left his lips, making his chest vibrate, and mixed with her softer one. “Can I confess you something?” He then asked, voice low, looking at her with a serious expression again. She hummed. “I heard the news of the anticipated wedding on tv, and when they speculated about your possible pregnancy I thought she was his.”

She gasped, “You thought I’d let him touch me so soon?”

“I mean, you had all the right to. I was so mad that night I went out with the boys trying to forget you, with little success,” he admitted, face turning red.

“I should’ve slept with him, though,” she pouted.

“Excuse me?”

“You left me all alone, Jeong Yoonoh, without saying a word, I felt my whole world crush on my shoulders and I couldn’t do anything about it,” she said, she wasn’t still mad about it, but thinking about all the pain she had been through made her heart clench in her chest every time. It had been awful.

He lowered his gaze for a second just to bring it up again, “I’m sorry,” he apologized. “But it went better like this, right? I bet your Father wanted my head on a silver plate when he found out, or am I wrong?”

She sighed, nodding. “He believed in your death too, that’s why he probably believed in mine,” she hypothesized, trying to calm herself. She didn’t like to think about her past life, she wanted to move on, even if that meant erasing her old self.

“Are you scared of this?”

“Sometimes,” she admitted, letting her hand rest on his chest. “But then I look at her and see your eyes in hers, my lips in hers, your dimples in her left cheek, our skin tones mixed together and I think that no matter what will happen we’ll live forever in her.”

Jaehyun closed his eyes, thinking about the little child that was sleeping on the other side of the room, no worry weighing on her little shoulders, and oh Lord, how much he would’ve paid to keep it that way forever.

“Were you scared when you found out you were having her?” He mumbled, opening his eyes again to study Scarlett’s expression.

“I was terrified they would take her away from me, from us,” she admitted playing with his hands. “But I’d do anything for her, I’d do anything for you. That’s why I jumped in this without thinking, I would never let them take you or her away from me. They should’ve walked over my dead body to get to you.”

Jaehyun pressed a kiss against her forehead and let his hand caress her back.

“What if they find us?” He asked, his voice muffled against her hair.

“They’ll have to bury me to stop me from fighting for this love.”

Jaehyun chuckled, “Since when you got so passionate?” He asked, in a light tone, “I still remember the woman that just wanted to have fun,” he teased, pocking her side, making her laugh. “Just for a night, Jaehyun,” he mocked her playfully, remembering what she told him when they started.

“Shut up,” she whispered, covering his mouth with a hand, “You’ll wake her up,” she warned him.

“She just got back to sleep, she’s done for the night, there’s no more milk to suck from you,” he whispered, playfully biting the skin under her collarbone.

“Stop it. And if she wakes we’ll have to give her the baby formula, and it’s expensive, we can’t waste it.”

“I won’t wake her, but answer my question, since when you would die for love?” He was caging her with his body, careful not to weigh on her, elbow standing at the side of her face.

“Since I met the two of you, Yoonoh,” she admitted, caressing his hair back and then his cheek. “You changed my life completely, in ways I had no idea were possible,” she said, pulling him down to kiss him softly.

“I always believed all of those romances in books were exaggerated until I met you. Until I understood the longing of the night every time the sun came up in the sky and ripped you away from me. Until I realized that some loves need to bleed before they can bloom. It was all before I craved to be free to caress your skin under the plain daylight, and whisper to you how beautiful you are,” she mumbled staring right into his eyes, feeling safe, feeling happy, feeling at home. “Before I missed all the moments we never got to live together. It was before I damned myself for all the time I had wasted pretending I didn’t love you when I probably would’ve sacrificed myself for you since forever.”

“You weren’t supposed to lose everything for me,” Jaehyun whispered, letting his hand trace the profile of her body but without diverting his gaze from her. It wasn’t fair she had to choose between love and power. He wanted to give her everything, shower her in gold and velvet, feed her the best food the land offered and the most precious wines of the best vineyards, but he couldn’t. He had nothing.

“They wanted to take it away from me anyway, Yoonoh,” she admitted, “there was nothing left for me anymore.”

Jaehyun nodded silently, eyes wandering on her relaxed face. Maybe even that was enough for her, or at least it seemed to be.

“I love it when you call me Yoonoh,” he said, leaning down to kiss her again and again, pushing the negatives thoughts out of his mind.

“Then I’ll never stop,” she mumbled against his lips, letting her hand get trapped in his hair. “I want you, love,” she mumbled against his ear.

Jaehyun pulled away from her, and stared at her, “Are you sure? Isn’t it a little bit too soon?” It had been a little more than a month since she gave birth to Eunbi and he didn’t want to make her burn important steps of her recovery.

She shook her head. “Kun said I’m fine, I recovered well.”

“You asked him if you could?” Jaehyun raised a brow, “Maybe the desperate woman I knew didn’t leave completely,” he taunted playfully.

“Oh please, I know you think I’m hot,” she teased the words she used the first time they got together.

Jaehyun rolled his eyes, “It won me once, not going to work twice.”

“But now you’re already mine, all mine, and the father of my beautiful baby,” she teased, pulling him closer by the collar of his shirt.

“You’re really going to be the death of me, aren’t you?”

She lifted her shoulders and chuckled, “Just let’s keep quiet, if she wakes up it’s over.”

Jaehyun nodded and trapped her lips into another kiss, this time more heated than the ones before, but sweeter than all the others they ever shared. He reached for the end of her nightgown and pulled it over her head, leaving her body exposed to the warm air of the room.

He let his eyes wander on her body for a while, taking in every detail. Noticing how she changed after the pregnancy. “God, you’re so beautiful,” he whispered, his eyes shining, looking at her like the most precious jewel in the world, and she felt warmth rush on her skin.

She felt insecure about her figure, her body had changed, her hips got a little bit wider, her stomach wasn’t flat like it used to be, and new stretch marks stayed on her skin. And seeing he still looked at her the same warmed her heart.

He threw the clothes at the end of the bed and leaned back down, biting the skin right under her ear, causing a moan to slip past her lips.

“Shh, you don’t want the others to hear us, right?” He reminded, looking at her through his eyelashes and then picking up where he stopped, tracing kisses down from her neck to her collarbone. When he reached her boobs he focused on them for a while, circling one perked nipple with his tongue and caressing the other with his index finger, making shivers run down her spine.

“Fuck, Yoonoh,” she whispered, squeezing her eyes shut as she rolled her head back. She had pent up stress to let go of mixed with a lot of sexual frustration, also her boobs were extremely sensitive, and she felt she could come from that only if he kept going. But almost hearing her thoughts, Jaehyun pulled away, leaving one last kiss before trailing south.

“It’s crime I didn’t get to witness to you with a belly, God,” he whined once reached her stomach, kissing every inch of skin. “Bet you looked so pretty and round.”

She moaned, rolling her head back, letting one hand sink in his hair.

“You were, right?” He smirked, cupping her breast, looking up for a second to make sure she wasn’t feeling sore. He knew they were more sensitive and he didn’t want to hurt her by applying too much pressure. “I’ll make sure I’ll be there for the next one, um,” he moaned, mouth wrapping around her mound, over the already wet panties.

“Yoonoh, please,” she moaned, pushing her hips up against his mouth.

“Still greedy, I see,” he teased, fingers locking in the band of her underwear to pull them down her legs and then throw them on the floor.

She shifted when the air of the room collided against her moist folds, and closed her legs in reaction.

Jaehyun tapped on her knee and sang, “Open your legs for me, love.”

She whined, pulling them apart slowly, “I want you,” she said again.

“I’ll take care of you first,” he said, kneeling down, nose buried between her legs.

“But if she wakes –”

“Shh, I said I’ll take care of you first,” he repeated, not letting space for retort in his words.

He kissed her inner thigh slowly, biting every now and then, making her arch her back and clasp on the bedsheets. Jaehyun reached her centre but hovered it and started kissing the right thigh, down to her knees and then up again.

“Jaehyun, please, we don’t have time,” she cried, trying to keep her voice low.

He didn’t answer her complaints but launched himself between her legs, nose pressing against her clit while his tongue started working wonders against her hole.

Low curses spilled out of her mouth as she threw her head back in pleasure, hand intertwining in his locks, pressing him down further.

Getting the message, Jaehyun’s hand reached for her thigh and pushed her lower body up, just enough to have better access to her entrance and let his lips devour her.

Scarlett had to bite down louder moans, losing her mind at the sensation, he was extremely precise in his movements, yet he was eating her out like he had been starving for ages.

“You taste so fucking good,” he moaned, face pressed against her pussy, tongue working up and down on her slit, before his lips wrapped around her clit, his attention all on the sensitive bundle of nerves between her legs.

“Fuck, it’s too much,” she groaned. It was incredibly soon but she was already overwhelmed, probably it was the hormones still acting up, or probably it was because it had been so much since she last had an orgasm, but she couldn’t hold it any longer.

Jaehyun smirked against her and then let two fingers slip inside of her, her wet walls taking him with no resistance.

“Are you going to come?” He asked, mouth still working on her, and the vibration of his voice made her head spin faster.

She simply nodded, feeling the knot in her stomach become tighter.

“Come, angel, I want to see you come undone for me,” he ordered, his long fingers pumping faster inside of her, his lips getting more aggressive.

With a silent longer moan, she let go, bucking her hips frenetically under his mouth, breath heavy and head incredibly light.

“Fuck,” she cussed, pulling her hand out of his hair, making him stand up again. “I missed it so bad.”

Jaehyun chuckled, licking his lips, tasting her again and then dragged his finger up to her parted mouth.

“Open,” he ordered, and then pushed his digits into her mouth. Her lips wrapped perfectly around him, tongue swirling around them, and watery eyes looking up at him. “God,” he moaned, throwing his head back, imagine for a second her mouth was wrapped around another part of his body.

“If I give you a blowjob, can you get hard again?” She teased, raising an eyebrow, as soon as he pulled his fingers out.

“You think I can’t fuck you more than once anymore?” He answered the tease.

She shrugged, tugging his shirt over his head and the pant of his brown pj's down. “Just making sure,” she whispered against his ear and then pushed him down on the mattress, her legs trapping him underneath her.

She leaned down, biting the lower part of his neck, making his skin blossom with red. She let her hand travel down until she reached the band of his boxer and slipped under it, finally touching him.

“Don’t tease me,” he warned, eyes barely open, looking up at her.

“Oh, now you don’t like being teased, how the tables have turned,” she taunted, pulling her hand away, making the band of his underwear snap against his skin.

“Scarlett, please,” he muttered through gritted teeth.

“Beg for it,” she ordered, standing up with her upper body, hands pressing on his chest.

Jaehyun sighed deeply, knowing that if he wanted to get somewhere he had to give in.

“Please, love, don’t tease me,” he said, annoyance in his voice. But when she cupped his chin and forced him to look at her he was startled.

“I said, beg for it.”

He gulped and then licked his lips, suddenly feeling a new rush. It was... unusual, but he liked it, more than he liked to admit, his leaking cock would say, so he went with it.

“Please, love, suck me already?” He begged, voice coming out hoarse and deep.

A smirk crept on her face and she let go of his face, crawling back to finally reach his lap. She pushed the underwear down his leg, his big cock sprung free and slapped against his toned abs.

She had to suppress a moan at the view and bent over, three fingers propping against his lips.

Jaehyun looked up, confused, but when she raised a brow he parted them, sucking on them just like she did before with his. She pulled out with a loud pop and wrapped her wet hand around his dick, teasingly whispering, “Good boy,” against his ear.

He let his head roll back, enjoying her taking control of the situation.

She started to pump up and down with slow movement, ever so suddenly her thumb grazing his throbbing head, smearing precum around his whole length every time she pumped down.

“Fuck,” he groaned, when she started circling his tip faster, “Please, Scarlett, please.”

“Please what, babe?” She teased, hand still moving slowly on his tip.

“Wrap your lips around me, I need your mouth on me, please,” he begged through gritted teeth, hands clenching in the sheets, trying to send his frustration somewhere else and don’t thrust up in the air like a horny teenage boy.

She smiled satisfied and wrapped her lips around his length, pushing her head down till his tip hit the back of her throat.

A deep moan slurred out of Jaehyun’s mouth, eyes rolling back in his head, not expecting she would take all of him so suddenly.

She started to bob her head up and down swiftly, and her eyes filled with tears every time he would hit the back of her throat, but she didn’t mind, she was setting the pace, having full control of what was going on, and she liked the feeling of his heavy member on her tongue.

“You like it, love?” She asked, pulling away to catch some breath, a string of saliva still connecting them. Jaehyun nodded, his forearm pressed to cover his eyes, as he tried to control himself from moaning too loud.

She pushed the arm away, “I want you to look at me, baby boy,” she commanded, grabbing his face and leaving a harsh kiss on his lips.

He breathed deeply fighting the urge to flip her over and fuck her already and nodded, forcing himself to keep his eyes fixated on her.

It was harder than expected when she kept hers open too while she started sucking him again, her brown eyes staring at him through wet eyelashes with a lustful gaze. And it got even more impossible when her hands reached down, cupping his balls, teasing them too.

“Scarlett, God, not the right time,” he slurred, unconsciously bucking his hips up for more.

She got up, replacing her mouth with her hand and smirked, “Is that too much for you?”She cooed, leaning forward pressing her forehead against his while her hand kept pumping incredibly fast.

“Yes, it’s a torture I can’t let out a sound,” he said, trying to reach for her lips but before he could she got up, going back to his dick.

“Then come for me,” she ordered, starting to bob her head on him again, focusing on the first half of his cock, while her hands pumped the rest. It didn’t take long for Jaehyun to come, hips rising from the mattress, while white strings of cum spilled in her mouth and some dropped down on her chin.

She licked what dripped down, teasingly looking at him, and winked.

He sighed and raised his torso from the bed, wrapping his arm around her waist to bring her on top of him, their chest pressed together.

“You had your fun pretty girl, now it’s my turn,” he whispered, in her ear, lifting her up, and lining his dick at her entrance. “Sink on my cock like the good girl you are,” he ordered, voice hoarse and deep ringing in her ear.

She bit her lower lip and let her body fall down slowly, her body adjusting at the sensation. It was strange for the first few seconds. Even if her body had been through a much worst type of stretch, but it still had been so long since she had him, that her body had to get used to the sensation again.

Jaehyun’s hand was placed against the small of her back, caressing it gently, and his lips were nibbling at her chest, leaving soft pecks on the soft flesh of her boobs. “Are you okay?” He asked, kissing her neck, to the jaw and then ending back against her lips.

Scarlet nodded, kissing him eagerly, locking her arms around his neck and lifting her hips up, just to fall down again, taking him in.

“Fuck, baby, so good,” he praised against her lips, hands digging at her side to hold her in place.

She threw her head back when she dropped down again, loving the sensation of being filled by him so well.

“Is it good?” He asked, voice coming out sultry but he wanted to make sure she was enjoying herself and wasn’t pressuring herself to do something she still wasn’t ready to do. That was why he let her ride, he wanted her to guide everything, going at her own pace.

“Yes,” she moaned, looking at him, “you always stretch me so good, Jae.”

He smiled, finally relaxing completely at her confirmation. “Then go on, show me how much you like it.”

She nodded and started lifting her hips up and down, circling every now and then while sitting, feeling his tip brush against her most sensitive spot.

“You’re still so tight,” he muttered, forehead falling against her shoulder as he felt his breath falter with every movement when her pussy sucked him perfectly.

“Yeah?” She asked, feeling the heat spread in her chest.

He nodded, before moving one hand to cup her breast, bringing it to his mouth, grabbing her left nipple with his teeth, scraping at the hard bud before letting go. A higher moan rolled out her lips and he was fast at bringing his hand over her mouth.

“Quiet,” he reminded her and then started licking her nipple again, the contrast between his hot mouth and the cold air making shocks of pleasure run down her spine. “They’re so full, fuck,” he praised, cupping her boobs gently, afraid of hurting her and spilling out some milk, but he couldn’t help but be amazed at her body. All the changes it had been through, all the struggles it had to face. It must have been so fucking hard for her.

“You like them?” She asked, hand wrapping around the base of his neck, grazing his jaw and apply some pressure.

“I love them,” he replied, “Love how they bounce up and down while you fuck yourself on my cock.”

She rolled her head back, feeling her pussy throb, and get wetter with every word that came out of his mouth. It felt so good to finally be back in his arms like that, loved and appreciated, feeling alive again.

“You’re so thick, fuck,” she cursed, the veins of his dick rubbing against her walls sending shocks of pleasure to her whole body, making her feel electric, buzzing with pleasure.

He pulled her closer, one hand wrapping over her right boob, the other around her waist, and started meeting her halfway, his hips bucking up, cutting her breath short.

“You’re taking me so well, love,” he praised, placing his forehead against hers, their hot breathes colliding, “want me to flip us over?” He asked when her bouncing started to slow down, and her thrust got more erratic.

“Yes, please, I’m tired,” she mumbled.

Jaehyun turned them over, making her lay against the mattress and started thrusting into her.

“Faster,” she moaned, planting her feet on the mattress to lift her hips higher.

“Are you sure?” He questioned, eyes never leaving hers.

“Yeah, I can take it,” she mumbled, digging her nails in the flesh of his shoulders as she pushed down to bring him closer to him.

Jaehyun grabbed the back of her thighs and pulled her legs around his waist starting to thrust harder and deeper.

And he wanted to last much longer but it had been so long and it felt so good he couldn't bring himself to push it any longer.

“Fuck, you feel so good,” he praised, head resting against hers, “are you close?”

She nodded, moaning softly, not able to do much more. This position was another level of intimacy and protection with his huge body shielding her. And probably that was also one of the reasons why she fell for him, Jaehyun made her feel safe, and that was beyond what his job used to be.

“Then come with me,” he urged, “but look at me in the eyes when you come,” he ordered.

She had to suppress a higher moan and forced her eyes open to look at his as she felt the orgasm approaching again. No other words were exchanged when the climax hit them both, pleasure washing over them making their muscles twitch and vision blur.

They laid there, panting, and hugging in each other warmth for a while.

“Are you okay?” He asked, looking down at her, covering their body with a cover.

“I’m fine,” she beamed, her face painted with a dumb smile that had no intention to fade.

“Mh, I can see,” he said, staring at her happy face.

“I was thinking,” she started, sitting on the bed, back resting against the wall behind the bed, “it’s so nice I’ll never have to hear you calling me ‘Highness’ or ‘Princess’.”

He smiled, looking up at her, her curls were brought back, the bangs mixing with the rest, apart for a few strands that covered her tired, but content, face. Her eyes were sparkling in the night and her plump lips were pulled in a beautiful smile.

“I just wish I could give you more than this,” he replied, glancing around over the small room that kept them warm. “A place for only us to stay,” he added.

“I like it here,” she admitted, cheek pressed against her knees as she stared at him. “I like having somebody always around. I like the chats of the boys filling the kitchen walls first in the morning. I like hearing Doyoung and Taeyong bicker over the smallest things. I like the sound of Mark’s laugh echoing every time Johnny breathes.”

Jaehyun smiled, shaking his head. “And do you like the TV not working? Or this small bed that barely fits us? The dinners with no expensive food? And the water falling in the corridor from the ceiling?”

“Yes,” she nodded, “I never watched TV. I love this bed because I can spend the whole night pressed against you. I love the food because Taeyong’s the best cook I've ever met, and he always brings the best bread of my life at home. For the water, we just need to wait for Johnny to fix it.”

Jaehyun laughed under his breath, “You really love it here, okay.” He raised his hands in surrender.

“Of course I do, I finally have a place to call home,” she admitted. “Also, I have you and Eunbi by my side, and as long as I have you, I don’t care where I go.”

“But you used to have so much,” Jaehyun murmured, sitting up in front of her.

“So much? And what’s the point of countless chambers you’re never going to use? Or big chandeliers that could fall at any moment, or dresses I would get to use only once because I couldn’t attend two events dressed in the same way,” she said, caressing his hair, “I love my new clothes, they finally smell like me and like home. And I love this small house, all the people that I love are close to me, no need to take five minutes to get to somebody if I feel like talking to them.”

“And when she gets older? Are we going to stay here forever?”

She shrugged, she honestly had no idea about what the future had for them. “I don’t know. I mean, it still feels like a dream that I’m here, alive and with the two of you, I can’t really think about the future.”

“You feel safer with them around?” He asked rhetorically, grabbing her nightgown from the end of the bed to hand it to her and also passing her a cloth they kept next to the bed to clean up.

She nodded, lips pressed in a thin line, wearing the nightgown again after wiping herself. “I know they’ll do anything for us,” she stopped and looked at the crib, “for her.”

Jaehyun hummed, he sometimes would forget their situation, she still was a Princess, a missing one, she never gave up her status, she just run away. She was a fugitive and would’ve been one forever.

“Maybe we can start to save some money to transfer to a bigger place all together, or get a small complex with more houses,” Jaehyun proposed.

“Yeah, but I don’t think it will happen soon,” she said. The winter season was successful, especially at the sailor shop, the bakery was doing amazing and so was the goldsmithing. But they couldn’t ask the others to put their money into something that was mostly for them.

“You know, let’s focus on the present,” she said, brushing his hair out of his face, hand cupping on his cheek, “in two days it will be her first Christmas, and our first together, too,” she reminded him. “You won’t have to watch my father stuff his face in chicken or my mom get drunk because she doesn’t want to listen to him,” she laughed and he mimicked her.

“No more dragging me out of a shiny ballroom because you are horny?” He teased.

“No more of that, remember when we almost got caught?”

“Yeah, I saw my whole life flash before my eyes.”

“You’re so dramatic, it –” before she could keep going a whine caught their attention and they were immediately on their feet, standing next to the cradle.

Eunbi was awake, her big brown eyes were open and a smiley expression was on her face, her little legs were kicking the cover and her arms were moving too, but she wasn’t crying.

“Hey, little bird,” Scarlett cooed, rocking the crib left to right. “what are you doing awake?” she asked, knowing she couldn’t answer, but Kun had told her it was extremely important to talk to her on any occasion.

“She wants you to pick her up,” Jaehyun said, tilting his head to point at her hands.

“No, she doesn’t,” she answered with a scoff.

“Look at the grabby hands,” he pointed out.

Scarlett rolled her eyes, he would come up with anything just have an excuse to hold her, “She's too small, it’s an involuntary reaction.”

“I’ll grab her then,” he said, stopping the movement and lifting her up.

Scarlett tried to pout but it faded as soon as a happy squeak left the baby’s lips. She grabbed a knitted blanket and placed it on her small body, and stared at her happy face, her mouth open to let out small sounds that made no sense.

“She has stars in her eyes,” Scarlett noted, wrapping an arm around Jaehyun, resting her head against his shoulder.

“Just like you,” he replied, rocking Eunbi gently. And she soon started to close her eyes again.

Heat rushed on Scarlett's face, she still wasn't used to his romantic words, simply because they had never been romantic, too dumb trying to hide what they felt. And well, Jaehyun was really romantic, more than she imagined, so it always caught her off guard.

“You should put her down, so we can go to sleep,” she proposed, leaving a small peck on her forehead. Jaehyun scrunched his nose but then nodded, laying her back down into her small bed. The quiet didn't last long, though, because as soon as they turned around she started crying.

“No, darling,” Scarlett hummed, picking her back up, “Don’t cry,” she whispered, caressing her head with her right hand, luckily she was still light enough that she could hold her in one arm.

“Want me to go prepare the milk?” Jaehyun asked, placing Taeyong’s blanket on her again.

“No, she’ll calm down, she’s not angry, she just wants attention, right?” She said, lulling her in her arms. “See, she almost stopped,” she pointed as her cries slowed again, and started to emit happy sounds again.

“A little bit moody, aren’t we, princess?” Jaehyun joked, wiping the tears from her face.

“It’s the weather,” Scarlett joked, but when they turned around facing the window they saw that it was snowing and a smile crept on their faces.

“Let’s go upstairs,” Jaehyun suggested, “there’s a better view.”

As soon as they opened the door they came face to face with the others, all in their night's clothes and sleepy faces.

“What are you doing up?”

They all started laughing not expecting to find themselves all in the corridor.

“She rarely cries so we thought something happened,” Taeyong admitted, leaning against Doyoung that seemed a little bit less sleepy than him. “That’s my blanket!” He then exclaimed, pointing at Eunbi.

Scarlett beamed a smile, “It’s her favourite, you must be her favourite uncle.”

“Of course, I birthed her,” he answered as if it was obvious.

“Hey, if it wasn’t for me she wouldn’t have a father,” Mark complained.

“I don’t understand while you fight when I’m clearly going to be her favourite, none of you will make jewels for her,” Johnny intervened.

“Guys, she’s probably starting now to recognize my face, I’m sure she’ll love you all,” Scarlett laughed. Eunbi had a little bit more than one month and they were already fighting for her undivided attention, that was going to be fun.

“Why are you here?” Mark asked, suddenly bringing the attention back to the real topic of discussion.

“Wanted to see the snow, Yoonoh said that upstairs there’s a better view.”

“Yeah, it’s the best place of the house even if it’s small,” Johnny explained. “Well, since we’re here, let’s go.”

She had never been there, mostly because there was nothing, it was a mansard with a couch and table, and some boxes on one side. But there was a big window that went from the ceiling to the back wall of the house, the windowsill big enough that it could've been a bed, and the view was indeed amazing.

The whole city could be seen from there, and if you squinted enough the sea was visible too. The yellow light of the streetlights warmed the white of the snow that was falling copious on the ground, dressing the roofs and trees in white. Nobody was outside but it was nice to imagine other people staring outside of their windows just like them.

Taeyong had rushed downstairs to make some hot chocolate and Doyoung had brought up some blankets so they could get comfortable staring at the show nature was offering. Nobody seemed to be sleepy, not even Eunbi that was still wide awake.

“Can we take her out tomorrow?” Mark asked Jaehyun and Scarlett with puppy eyes. “I’ll take care of her, Yuta will come with me.”

“What? I’m not stepping out with her,” Yuta declared scoffing and Mark sulked.

Scarlett chuckled and let her head fall against Jaehyun’s shoulder.

“As you wish older brother,” Jaehyun joked, fixing the blanket on Scarlett’s legs.

“See that they trust me!” Mark exclaimed, pushing Yuta playfully and the other pushed back.

“Please, there’s just one toddler here, act grown,” Taeyong stopped their bickering. “And why don’t you go, too?”

“She’s a responsibility, I want to be the cool uncle, not the responsible one,” Yuta answered as if it was the most obvious explanation.

“It’s fine, I can go with Mark if he wants company,” Scarlett reassured.

“Or we could all go out together,” Johnny proposed. “There are Christmas markets downtown, it can be a different Christmas’s eve... eve.”

“Yeah, that’s better,” Yuta agreed, stretching his arms before grabbing a cup full of chocolate and passing it to Doyoung.

“Sounds great for me,” Jaehyun said, “You?”

“As long as we are together I’m okay with anything,” Scarlett answered, smiling at them.

“Then it’s fine for all of us,” Taeyong stated, sitting down on the floor between Mark and Doyoung, in front of Scarlett that was sitting on the couch with Johnny and Jaehyun at her sides.

They sat there for a while, talking about the more and less, planning what to do the day after.

“Does she have to eat?” Johnny asked, leaning to look at Eunbi, she was still up, but a little less energetic than before.

“No, I guess she’s just happy,” Scarlett smiled, pushing the blanket back so it wouldn't cover her mouth.

“And you?” Johnny asked, looking at her.

Scarlett didn’t reply immediately, even if she knew the answer. She looked around, taking in their tired faces, picking up their voices and laughter. She stared at Jaehyun that was laughing loudly at something Doyoung said. She watched Yuta stick to Mark and Taeyong eat all the leftovers of the chocolate cups. She looked in front of her, watching the Cristhams light glisten and the snow pirouette from the sky. She then glanced at Eunbi that was giggling by herlsef, kicking her arms in the air and then turned back to Johnny.

“I’ve never been happier, never.”

Johnny smiled and wrapped an arm around her, embracing her, and she let herself lull in his, already familiar, scent. "Glad to hear that, you deserve it after everything."

She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, letting their chats linger in the back of her brain, trying to imprint all of their differences, praying they would never become strangers for her. She had already lost so much, but that had no meaning, but them... they meant the world for her, and she didn’t want to ever say goodbye.

She was so glad to have found them, and even if it was funny how much Mark would brag about bringing them together, she couldn’t help but agree and be extremely grateful to him. He could've said no, leave her in that small town, and oh, only God knows what would've happened.

Ten months ago she thought she was lost. She woke up every day with the realisation that her stone was going to be planted in a foreign country and Jaehyun couldn’t even pay a visit to her once she was gone. She thought she was going to carry a ring that was too heavy for her. And at some point, feared that her light was going to fade completely, with nobody close to her noticing.

But now she was there, in an even farther away land, with her first child in her arms, and Jaehyun, her first cursed love, at her side. In a little home that was barely big enough to welcome all of them, and was falling apart. But that was the most important part, it wasn’t a castle, or a house, but a home. It was a place for her, for her to be herself, for her to cry, scream, dance and sing, for her to love, to fear and to hate. It wasn’t what she was looking for when she abandoned everything but it was better than what she had in mind when she left.

She couldn't say it hadn't been a reckless decision, but it was worth it.

“Hey,” Jaehyun called, caressing her cheek, shaking her out of her thoughts, “let’s go to bed, mmh?” he proposed, pointing at Eunbi that finally gave in and fell asleep in her hold.

Scarlett yawned and then nodded, carefully standing up with Jaehyun's help.

The others greeted their goodnights, but before they walked downstairs she stopped and turned around.

“Guys,” she called, voice low to not wake the baby up. They turned around and signalled her to go on, “Thank you,” she smiled.

The one expressing their confusion was Mark that asked, “For what?”

She beamed softly and hugged Eunbi tighter, "For showing me there's a place for me in this world," she confessed, and then glanced at Jaehyun, "For showing me there's always a place for love if you fight hard enough."

hope you liked it!

part three: forever is the sweetest con

693 notes · View notes

tyonfs · 4 years

Text

i like me better (when i’m with you)

PAIRING ▸ jeong jaehyun x fem!reader

GENRES ▸ friends to enemies to lovers, college au, sports, friends with benefits, smut, crack, fluff

WARNINGS ▸ sexual !! tension !! lots of it, smut (public sex, fingering, hate sex, raw sex, pool sex, oral sex), mark lee cockblocking, also yes, there’s actual fluff

SUMMARY ▸ there was no one else on the planet that made your blood boil like jeong jaehyun did. you never thought your feelings toward him were anything past pure hatred, but when you were lost in the feeling of his lips on yours and his hands on your body, you couldn’t help but think that maybe a part of you didn’t completely hate his guts.

PLAYLIST ▸ i like me better by lauv • unravel me by sabrina claudio

WORD COUNT ▸ 11896 words

TAG LIST ▸ @gotoartistprofile @chanluster @steamyjaehyun

AUTHOR’S NOTE ▸ big shoutout to fia for hyping me up to complete this and i hope you guys enjoy it !! thank you so much for reading ♡ part of the dunk shot! series but can be read separately!

SOMETIMES, THE AMOUNT OF HATRED YOU HAD FOR JEONG JAEHYUN AMAZED YOU.

To the average human being, Jeong Jaehyun was, in a sense, perfect. On the surface, he was everyone’s trademark Golden Boy—good grades, athletic, and a seemingly good personality. The last point, however, was a complete and utter lie. Simply put, Jaehyun was a wolf in sheep’s clothing, and you, unfortunately, wound up becoming his target.

If it weren’t for your love for cheerleading, you probably would never have to see Jaehyun, but your passion came with a price. Competitors were often asked a series of questions, and these questions typically included inquiring about your hardships as an athlete. If someone were to ask you what the hardest part of being a cheerleader was, your answer would not be what they expected.

It wasn’t getting back up after bad falls that left you with bruises and a concussion. It wasn’t dealing with the basketball team’s aftermath of a devastating loss and having to cheer them on through it. It wasn’t waking up extra early for morning practices, or having to push yourself to run miles in the sweltering heat. Hell, it wasn’t even dealing with the horny basketball team members at afterparties.

It was the annual training camp.

Every winter, the team attended a week-long training session along with several other teams in the city. With state-of-the-art facilities and a massive training center, the training camp was an event that the entire team looked forward to. Although the training was brutal, the luxury of the hotel rooms and the gourmet meals had made up for all of that. Yet, despite all of that, the camp itself was still hell for you.

It wasn’t all bad, though. In fact, you indulged in the concept of a training camp, delighted with the opportunity to meet cheerleaders from different universities. A handful of your friends from high school had joined teams at different universities, so it was exciting to get to see them all again. All in all, it was the whole package deal: friends, your favorite sport, and fun times. What could possibly ruin that?

Well, a certain someone by the name of Jeong Jaehyun could, and that wonderful individual incensed your fury quite like no other.

“You again,” you spat, clutching your duffel bag strap. You had just gotten off the bus to head into the hotel, but the devil himself was blocking your way.

“Y/N,” the devil cooed, “do you need help carrying that?”

“I’m fine.”

You shrugged Jaehyun off and tried to move past him, but the bane of your existence had other plans. He tossed you a small carton of milk; it was the kind you could buy at a vending machine. Your reflexes kicked in just in time for you to catch it, giving him a questioning look.

“You should be drinking more milk, Y/N. It’s good for you,” Jaehyun said. You were sure he was going to make a snide comment so you opened your mouth to protest, but he continued, “Jaemin likes big tits, you know?”

Ouch.

You and Jaehyun went farther back than you’d like to admit. While you did currently attend different universities, you had the joyous experience of going to the same high school as him. He wasn’t too different now; he had the same dimpled smile, the same godly features, and the same cocky smirk when things were going the way he planned. What was different was that you two were once friends.

And what took the cake? You had a big crush on his friend and fellow teammate. Introducing Na Jaemin, everyone.

It wasn’t like you never got over Jaemin, but you had to admit that your heart still fluttered pitifully whenever you saw him. It didn’t help that he was so breathtakingly beautiful, so undeniably genuine, and such a sweetheart. Unfortunately, Jaehyun knew of your little secret. Being the conniving little snake he was, he used it to his advantage.

Ever since your fallout with him in your senior year of high school, you’ve hated Jeong Jaehyun, and you were sure he hated you right back. It almost felt akin to the competition at this point, and you were a pretty sore loser. Honestly, you were sad initially when he broke off your friendship in senior year and threw crude insults at you. You normally didn’t let things get to you, but it hurt to hear that your best friend didn’t want anything to do with you after you had told him you were going to a different university. You were sure the both of you had grown past that, but now he had changed from a sincere highschooler to a complete low-life piece of shit.

“You’re a douche, Jaehyun,” you sneered.

A grin spread across his face. “Yeah, I know.”

You scoffed. “God, if I could, I would smash that pretty face into—”

“Hey!” a loud voice laced with trepidation interjected. It was your best friend on your school’s basketball team, Mark Lee, coming to your rescue; or, rather, he was trying to prevent you from doing something you’d most probably regret. He shot Jaehyun a warning look and slung an arm around your shoulders. “Y/N, what’re you doing here? We have to check into our hotel rooms.”

You looked back at Jaehyun to see a smug look on his face before he turned to catch up to Taeyong and Jaemin. You looked back up at Mark, who was also keeping an eye out for the demon in disguise.

“Thanks for getting me out of that mess,” you mumbled. “That guy is so infuriating. I can’t believe he still brings up Jaemin when I’m clearly over him!”

Your words were sharp enough that Mark and the people around you flinched, even if they weren’t completely paying attention to your rant. It was common knowledge that Jaehyun’s presence left you in low spirits, and Mark had come to terms that you would always be in a bitter mood during the training camp, and that there was only one person to blame for it.

Mark shot you a sympathetic look that you knew was intended to show his helpfulness, but instead just served to make you appear all the more bitter.

“Why don’t you just ignore him?” he suggested. “He’s just looking for a reaction out of you.”

“If I let him get the last word, then he wins.”

“At least he’d stop bothering you,” Mark reasoned as you both made your way to where your team had gathered by the reception desk.

“Is this about Jaehyun again?” Zhong Chenle chimed in, a devilish grin plastered across his face. “You’re a handful, Y/N.”

“Hey! What’s that supposed to mean?” you snapped.

Chenle just stared at you, arching a brow as if the answer should have been obvious. “You and Jaehyun,” he said, “there’s some tension there.”

“Wow, Sherlock Holmes. Observant, aren’t you?” you spat, words dripping with sarcasm. “We’ve hated each other for years. Of course there’s tension.”

Johnny Suh snorted, averting his gaze as to not bring attention to himself. Chenle rolled his eyes, a delighted smile on his face as he watched you carefully, digging into his bag of chips in the meantime.

“Y/N, I think he means a different kind of tension,” Mark said.

“What kind of tension?” you asked, shocking the rest of them with your surprisingly innocent response. In retrospect, it was more because you couldn’t imagine the answer being anything past the realm of hatred.

While they all hesitated to respond, Johnny spoke up, “He meant the ‘I wanna beat you up and then have rough sex with you’ kind of tension.”

You immediately froze—long enough for Chenle to take a picture of your reaction—the expression on your face a cross between incredulity and visceral rage. You must have looked like a ticking time bomb because Mark had to take a cautious step back.

“Come again? Rough sex?” You were well aware of how strangled and pitched your voice sounded as soon as it escaped your lips, how guilty it sounded, but you couldn’t focus on that as the weight of Johnny’s words were sinking in. “Jaehyun and I?”

“Yeah, pretty much,” Johnny answered.

“That’s a lie.”

“Yeah? Then why do you two always look at each other so weird?”

You didn’t know how to defend yourself now so you just said, “He’s a bastard and I would never see him in any other way.”

“You say that now but we all know—”

“Alright, let’s drop it,” Mark said, trying to defuse the situation before you blew it up into an argument. “I would rather go rest in my hotel room rather than bear witness to a homicide.”

“Fine, fine,” Johnny relented.

You scoffed and jabbed at his foot with yours before letting the topic go. Your squabbles with them were all in good nature, but this one somehow put you off. It was like Johnny had planted the seeds and were waiting for them to grow. You were starting to mull over every interaction you’ve had with Jeong Jaehyun.

Johnny and Chenle had made a startlingly accurate observation. You and Jaehyun did look at each other for a little too long sometimes, nearly to the point where it seemed like you were basking in the attention of the other—

No fucking way.

You were not going down that path. There was nothing more to your relationship with Jeong Jaehyun than pure hatred and resentment. He was a douchebag who was intent on making you feel like shit. His only motive was to start shit again between you and Jaemin, who you would’ve completely forgotten by now if it weren’t for him.

No way. There was absolutely no undercurrent of desire that was creeping its way to be uncovered.

Or was there? a small, treacherous part of your mind offered.

You were lost in your thoughts as the coaches handed you your room key, as you waited for your roommate who was some girl named Eunha from the other school, as you made your way to your room on the fifth floor.

The only thing you could think about were those long stares, those mesmerizing eyes, and the implication behind them. You always attributed it to Jaehyun being a hormonal teenage boy, but you had to admit that you’ve seen him look at you with some semblance of lust. Perhaps that same feeling was buried far in the depths of your consciousness, too.

Could you possibly be attracted to the devil incarnate, Jeong Jaehyun?

No, you argued with yourself, and shit, even your frontal lobe sounded pretty unconvinced. He’s a petty bastard and that’s all he’ll ever be.

You instilled the mantra of you and Jaehyun being sworn enemies in your head, but you couldn’t help the fact that it was peppered by the memories of an irritatingly familiar smirk. You scowled, willing your head to get rid of all-things-Jeong-Jaehyun, but he was right there.

Literally.

He was standing right in front of you.

“Hey, neighbor,” he teased, all too satisfied with the horrified look on your face. “Guess you can’t get rid of me.”

You were falling when you jolted awake.

A groan tore its way past your lips. You made sure you didn’t disrupt Eunha’s sleep before you recounted your dream. It had been a while since you’ve had one, and realization was morphing into shame when you realized what kind of dream it was. You’ve never had a wet dream before but what made you want to astral project yourself into oblivion was when you realized that Jaehyun caused it.

After tossing and turning for a couple of minutes in a desperate attempt for sleep to overcome you once more, you came to terms with the fact that you were staying awake for now. Staying awake was worse, though, because there was no way you could keep the intruding thoughts at bay. Not with the way Jeong Jaehyun kept flashing behind your eyelids, at least.

You considered how to spend the rest of your night, surveying your options as you stared up at the ceiling:

Watch season three of Riverdale on Netflix so you could make fun of it.

Attempt to sleep, but with little success because there was no way you were going back to bed after that dream.

Count the slacks of the window’s blinds even though it would be pointless because what the fuck were you going to do with that information?

It was truly astounding how interesting your life was.

You couldn’t think clearly with Eunha’s soft snoring, so you grabbed your keys and pushed the door open carefully to keep it from squealing. After your delicate movements to escape your room quietly, you leaned against the wall and let out a sigh of relief. You weren’t too keen on someone scolding you in the middle of the night for being outside, but you needed to clear your head somewhere. You packed for weather that was balmy, but the air conditioner carried a bite to it that made you wish you hadn’t just worn shorts and a tank top to bed.

You could practically hear Mark mocking you if he were here: Are you in the right headspace, Y/N?

You shook your head, getting your provoking best friend out of there, but instead, you found yourself wandering into dangerous territory again.

Johnny and Chenle were parroting the same words over and over again in your head. You wished you could use your metaphysical hands in your head and squeeze the life out of them, but they always flew out of your grasp. You clicked your tongue absentmindedly, your annoyance rehashing itself as your mind gravitated back to Jeong Jaehyun with his stupid smirk and annoyingly persistent cockiness. It was almost pitiful that you hated his guts and yet you couldn’t deny the magnetism he carried, the pull that made your breath hitch when he met your eyes.

His presence was announced by the change in the air more than anything else. You didn’t have to see him to know he was there. You clenched your jaw; you couldn’t catch a break from him even during the ungodly hours of the night.

He was unavoidable.

He hummed with amusement. “Look who’s here.”

“What are you doing up this late? Go to bed.”

You didn’t even bother to look at him because there was one thing you were sure of and it was that you could not look at his sickeningly attractive face right now. Jaehyun didn’t move, blatantly ignoring your order. The tension was so thick that you wanted to storm away, but you knew he would follow you just to piss you off.

“I couldn’t sleep,” he said. “You should be the one resting up. You cheerleaders always train until you’re near death.”

“Can’t sleep,” was your curt response.

He laughed once, a short sound that was pretty much gone the moment it hit your eardrums. “What? You get nightmares or something?”

“So what if I do?” you retaliated, getting oddly defensive. It was a given that you’d lie about getting a nightmare over a wet dream. “It’s none of your business.”

He laughed again but this time it was lower, more dangerous. “It’s my business when it concerns you.”

“I have and will never be your business, Jeong Jaehyun.”

He leaned against the wall. “I beg to differ.”

“Then keep begging.”

“If you say so.”

“Jaehyun,” you interrupted your own banter. “What’s the point of this conversation? Just go back to your room so we can go back to not talking to each other.”

“I’m good, thanks.”

“That’s unfortunate,” you said. “I don’t want to talk to you, so go find someone who does.”

“We don’t have to talk.” Suddenly, his voice sounded closer, and you forced your gaze down at the strangely-patterned hotel carpet.

You swallowed thickly. “I’m here to clear my head. I don’t want you to hover around me for the rest of the night.”

“Actually, I had something else in mind.”

He closed in on you, one of his hands skimming up the soft skin of your arm. A shudder ran down your spine as you felt his fingers travel up to your shoulder, your collarbone, and then the side of your neck. With a swift movement, he caged you in his arms, biceps flexing as he did.

What was going on? You couldn’t quite keep up with the situation but the way Jaehyun was looking down at you made you feel hot. It was exactly like your dream—

“Holy fuck, Jaehyun.”

You couldn’t stop the words from escaping your lips when you felt his hot breath on your neck. Your head went fuzzy and you were pretty sure your knees were ready to buckle under you. The corner of Jaehyun’s lip lifted into a smirk as if he had been planning this. You mustered a scowl at him but one thing was clear: you screwed yourself over by getting into this situation.

Damn it. You knew you should’ve watched season three of Riverdale instead

Also, Chenle and Johnny were right. Not that you’d ever tell them that; put simply, you were a sore loser.

Lust was swimming in Jaehyun’s eyes. The way he caged you felt predatory, a show of dominance rather than passion. That smirk of his carved in deeper, and it only pissed you off. Yet, as much as it pissed you off, all you wanted him to do was just ruin you.

Your pride was too strong, though, and you concluded that you would rather stick a fork in your eye than let Jaehyun do what he wanted. This sparked a dilemma in your head: to fuck or not to fuck Jaehyun, that was the question. One sounded like a pretty uneventful night, while the other sounded appealing save for the self-loathing you’d experience afterward.

“You want me, Y/N,” he cooed. “I know you do.”

“I hate you.”

“Trust me, I know.”

“I mean it, Jaehyun,” you hissed. Your head was screaming at you to just go with it, but denying Jaehyun’s advances and provokes was just natural instinct to you. “I don’t want you. Stop lying to yourself.”

“Is that so? I think you’re the liar here,” he replied easily as you dodged his attempt to kiss you.

You pushed at his muscular arm but he didn’t budge. For a moment, you strongly considered just dropping to the ground and crawling out from under his legs, but you were done for. Seconds later, Jaehyun’s hand flew up, long fingers digging into the soft flesh of your face as he forced your chin upward to look at him directly. The lust in his eyes was so clear, so alluring, and it made you stop struggling for a second.

“I’m not going to ask you again. Let go of me.”

“Good, it’s a waste of breath.”

“Has anyone ever told you how infuriating you are?”

“You did. Many times.”

“Just fuck off already.”

Your words were like poison, but for some odd reason, Jaehyun was immune to it. Any reasonable person would at least flinch, but Jaehyun was so fixated on his one goal. Again, he didn’t budge. He gazed into your eyes with a fierce intensity that threw you off.

“Just let me fucking kiss you, Y/N.”

His smirk was gone. He wasn’t teasing you anymore. Jaehyun’s eyes darkened with his command.

He leaned in and you could feel his hot breath fanning your lips, drinking in your appearance. You were pulled into his trap and you hated yourself for it. You swallowed hard as all of your worries about being with Jaehyun and getting caught had started to fade away. All you could do was yield to him.

“Fine,” you whispered.

“Good girl,” was all he got out before basically smashing your lips together.

It was rushed, messy, and way too rough. Jaehyun grabbed the back of your neck, his other arm still locking you in place. Your hands moved from gripping at the front of his shirt to slowly wrapping around his neck. You weren’t sure how you felt, but there was something that made you want to tangle your fingers in his hair and get lost in him.

The moment Jaehyun’s tongue slid along the crease of your lips, you were conflicted. You weren’t exactly sure what to do so he took the reins. You wondered if he was expressing his pent-up hatred as well. It was clear in the way he was taking prying your mouth open with his tongue, snaking his hot muscle to dance with yours as if he had something to prove. He wanted you to see that he was the dominant one, that he had leverage over the situation.

But when he broke away, he flipped the switch. The both of you were left catching your breath, Jaehyun resting his forehead against yours in a feeling that had a weird sort of intimacy stemming from it. His hand dropped from your neck to brush messy locks of hair behind your shoulders.

Well, that explained why humans were so tempted by the devil.

“That wasn’t so bad, was it?” Jaehyun grinned down at you.

You fought down the shyness that was creeping into your chest. Before you could respond, the both of you turned your heads at the sound of footsteps. A flashlight glimpsed by you when you saw two dark figures at the end of the hall. It didn’t sound like your coach, but you weren’t too keen on sticking around to figure out who it was.

“Son, how in the world did you get locked out of your room this late?” one of them asked.

“I’m telling you, I needed to use the bathroom so I went outside without my key, and then I remembered the bathroom was in the room.”

That voice was most definitely Mark.

“Hey!” the security guard scolded when he saw you two. “What are you kids doing? It’s late!”

“You’re on your own.” You pushed Jaehyun away from you and fumbled for your keys before Mark or the security guard could spot you. “Bye.”

You jammed your key in, not worried about waking up your roommate anymore. All you could hear was Jaehyun growling out a short string of curses before you shut the door behind him and leaned against it. Your head was still reeling in what had just happened, but that kiss had left you in the clouds. You could feel the ghost of his lips on yours. Dazed, you just fell onto your bed, into the entrancing clutches of sleep.

You were exhausted when you woke up, and you blamed Jaehyun for it.

You weren’t in the proper condition for training; you hadn’t gotten enough sleep and your head was a mess (well, you supposed you were the only one to blame for the latter). You forgot to set your alarm so you woke up to Eunha shaking you gently, coaxing you into stirring. She was already dressed, tying her hair up in a ponytail. You all but jumped out of bed when you saw her, thinking you were late.

“What time is it?” you asked groggily, rubbing the sleep from your eyes as you stood up and tried to adjust to the morning light.

“You’ve still got plenty of time,” she assured you. “I just like to get ready early so I can go for a quick run.”

“Ah, okay. Have fun,” you mumbled before she left the room, leaving you to drag yourself around the room to get ready. You heard a knock at the door and went to open it, assuming it was Eunha forgetting her keys. Your eyes narrowed when you saw who it was. “Jaehyun?”

“I couldn’t stop thinking about you.” His voice was somewhere between a pant and a rasp as if he had been working out, which he probably was judging by the sheen of sweat on his biceps.

“Were you waiting for Eunha to leave?” you asked. “You’re disgusting. Why would you think about me?”

“I was thinking about how much of a bitch you are for running away and letting me get in trouble like that.”

“Pity.” You mocked a pout for him. “Now move. I have to get ready.”

“Let me in.”

You made a face at the thought. You knew where he was going with this and you needed to stop it. “No. You’re disgusting.”

“You liked it last night.”

His eyes searched yours in the dim light, looking for something that unfortunately was there: longing. You were never the greatest at hiding your emotions, which was why you couldn’t lie to yourself and refuse Jaehyun. Screw your transparency. Jaehyun grinned at your silence and took a step in your room when you opened your door wider for him.

You closed the door. “I hated every second of it,” you said in a childish attempt to get on his nerves.

You were a terrible liar.

Your back was against the door in a second. You could only let out a soft gasp before he kissed you, hands on your waist, slowing his movements unlike the hurriedness from last night. It was foreign, the way he kissed you like you were the only girl he saw. You pulled away quickly but it just left the both of you staring at each other’s lips.

“You sure about that?” His lips curled into a smirk.

“Don’t get me wrong,” you warned in a low voice, “I still hate your guts.”

“As I’m reminded of every single time I see you,” he returned coolly.

“Fuck off.”

This time, you pulled him down to kiss him again. You fisted your hand into his hair, tugging at his dark locks as your lips moved smoothly against his. Caught off guard, Jaehyun groaned, low and deep against your lips.

The two of you separated again before Jaehyun said, “See? I know you want me. Only I can make you feel this good, Y/N.”

You scoffed. “We’ll see about that.”

Jaehyun’s eyes darkened at the challenge. To prove his point, he pushed his knee up and between your legs, pressing against your clothed cunt. A gasp escaped your lips, the fingers curled in his hair instinctively tightening. You bit your lip but to no avail; a whimper escaped your lips as soon as he started pulsing his knee against you. You grabbed onto his shoulders for leverage, burying your face into his chest while bunching up the thin fabric of his shirt.

You wanted to hold back your moans because you were adamant about not giving Jeong Jaehyun the satisfaction of hearing you moan. Instead, you shifted your hips so that the pressure of his knee became more intense. Sparks flew behind your eyelids as he bounced his knee under you.

He finally released the tight grip he had on your waist in favor of palming one of your breasts, squeezing it firmly through your shirt and bra. All the while, he continued ramming his knee against the apex of your legs. He kept his eyes on yours and you scowled at the thought of him getting off on seeing you crumble in front of him. But you couldn’t stop yourself. He wanted to completely and utterly ruin you, wanted to fuck you in and shut you up.

The worst part was that you wanted to let him.

“You’re so cute when you’re like this,” he mused, slowly rubbing his knee in circles against you. “God, you’re still wearing that fucking tank top.”

“You’re such a—ah!”

He groped your chest again, thumb pressing down on your nipple. Another whimper escaped you as Jaehyun grazed his lips down your neck, nipping at the supple skin. You only got louder as the kisses turned into bites.

He ignored you and removed his hand. Instead, he tugged the neckline of your tank top down, delighted at the loose straps sliding down your shoulders. He yanked it down to your waist so you were exposed to him, and you swore you heard his breath hitch. Jaehyun pinched your nipple with two fingers, drawing out a moan that drove him crazy. He buried his face into your neck, sucking and making you quiver under him.

“Didn’t you say I had small tits earlier?” you jeered, a teasing lilt to your tone.

“Yeah, I still stand by that,” he replied, resulting in you punching his shoulder.

“Asshole.”

“Hey, I never said it wasn’t cute.”

“You’re such a softie,” you grumbled, but your voice was gentler than before. It was almost like you were warming up to Jeong Jaehyun, and you hated the mere thought of that.

Jaehyun pulled away from your neck. “Y/N, I want you to suck me off,” he demanded.

“I refuse.”

“Be a good girl and do it for me.”

You swore you’d go crazy if he called you ‘good girl’ one more time. You were pretty revolted at the thought of sucking his dick, but the way he looked so fragile under your hold made you want to do it for the power rush. It was like some cheap porno in a way; ‘College Jock Gets Sucked Off By Cheerleader.’ You bet half the members on the team beat their meat to something similar to that.

Your shoulders sagged. “Fine. Get on the bed.”

Jaehyun groaned at your approval. “Thank you, thank you, thank you,” he said, letting go of you to pull down his sweats on his way to your bed. He sat at the edge of it, tugging the elastic of his boxers down. You swallowed hard, tugging your tank top back up as you stared at his painfully hard erection springing out.

You got on your knees in front of him, lips parted in anticipation of taking in his length. Your hair fell over your face, which Jaehyun took notice of and held it back in a fist. Taking a deep breath, you wrapped your hand around his cock. It was rock solid to the touch and twitched at your grip. Glancing up at an eager Jaehyun, you pumped the length of it once, inciting a groan from him.

You wrapped your lips around the head of his cock, rousing a strangled noise from his throat. He looked down at you through half-lidded eyes, messy strands of your hair tangling in his fingers while his other hand was gripping the stiff hotel sheets. Then, you took him in fully at his encouragement (which was more of him just grabbing the back of your head and pushing it down on his cock).

“Shit,” he breathed out before slowly moving his hips in and out of your mouth. It was like iron wrapped around velvet, and he was relishing how hot your mouth felt.

He pushed your head down further and right as you gagged on his length, there was a knock at the door.

“Y/N!” Mark’s voice sounded from the other side. “Are you coming for breakfast?”

You pulled off of him with a pop, a string of saliva dripping off your lips. Your eyes were wide as you lunged for your phone, checking the texts. Meanwhile, Jaehyun just frowned down at you, looking up at the ceiling with a frustrated sigh.

“Holy fuck,” you muttered when you looked at the time. You called out to Mark, “Give me a minute!”

“Perfect,” Jaehyun said in a low voice and held the back of your head, attempting to push you down on him. “We can finish up now.”

“Are you an idiot?” you hissed, swatting at his hand. “I have to get out of here before Mark finds out you’re in here.”

Ignoring your state of panic, Jaehyun said, “You look so hot with drool on your chin.”

That was the most disgusting thing you had ever heard, and if it weren’t for Mark being on the other side of the door where you and Jaehyun were screwing around, you would have beat the living daylights out of him. Only a creep like Jeong Jaehyun could find something like drool sexy. You scowled at him and wiped it off with the back of your hand.

“Put your dick away,” you scolded. “Hide in the closet and you can leave when I’m gone.”

He rolled his eyes at you and stood up, making his way to the bathroom. “I need to get rid of the problem you caused.”

You had no time to complain about him jerking off in your bathroom. Mark was not a very patient man, so as soon as Jaehyun closed the door behind him, you stripped off your pajamas and threw on whatever was at the top of your suitcase. You brushed your teeth at the speed of light, using your other hand to brush down your hair. After you laced up your shoes, you opened the door to Mark looking at you suspiciously.

“You’re never late,” he pointed out.

“I couldn’t sleep last night,” you said. In your defense, it wasn’t a complete lie.

“Oh, by the way,” Mark started, “can I use your bathroom real quick?”

“No!” you exclaimed, pushing him away from your room and in the direction of the elevator. “My roommate, um, is… on her period—yeah, you don’t want to see that mess.”

Another reason why you hated Jeong Jaehyun was for giving you reasons to lie when you were a terrible liar.

Training was long and grueling. Your bones were mush and your muscles ached, pins and needles shooting through you every time you moved. As your teammates dragged you to get dinner with them, you couldn’t even resist because you were so drained.

The one thing you loved about training was that you could wear whatever you wanted, whereas you were confined to tight skirts and crop tops at your university. Now, you could rest in whatever position you wanted without worrying about exposing anything, so you didn’t hesitate to manspread as soon as you got to the cafeteria table.

“Did you guys hear about Jaehyun from the other school?” one of the girls gossiped. “Looks like he was fooling around with someone last night.”

You were grounded back into reality from whatever dimension you were floating about in. Your teammates were perplexed as you choked on air, hitting your chest to stop yourself from coughing. You were handed a glass of water, which you gingerly accepted and drank until your body had calmed down.

“Ah, sorry, Y/N,” your teammate apologized. “I forgot you and Jaehyun have bad blood between you.”

“You’re good,” you told her, waving it off. “I was surprised for a second, but I guess it makes sense for a guy like him to go around hooking up.” Then, silence fell. You were confused as they all looked at you with a puzzled look. “What? Am I stereotyping too harshly? My bad.”

“No, it’s not that,” another chimed in. “A lot of girls go around hitting on him, but Jaehyun never lays a hand on them. I thought it was common knowledge that he doesn’t do that sort of stuff, but I guess it makes sense that you don’t care about the details.”

That was news to you.

“Yeah,” you replied distantly. “I don’t care.”

So Jaehyun doesn’t hook up, was what you happened to hear around the grapevine, and he most definitely doesn’t hook up with his enemies.

You stood up in the middle of your dinner. “I gotta go,” you said. “I’ll see you girls tomorrow.”

You actually weren’t very sure where Jaehyun was, but you figured if you walked around enough, you’d run into him or someone from his team. You headed out of the canteen and walked to the basketball courts, expecting to see him dribbling a bar or doing reps. But the first person you saw was Na Jaemin, and he noticed you immediately, eyes sparkling with recognition.

“Y/N!” he greeted cheerfully. “It’s been so long.”

That infectious smile of his was plastered across his face, making a small one creep to your lips. If Jaehyun smiled like that more, then you could understand his charm, but he was always so moody around you. He either did something to get on your nerves or he would just flat-out ignore you. Furthermore, he always riled you up instead of offering you that warm security that Jaemin emanated—

Wait, why were you comparing him to Jaehyun?

“Sorry,” you apologized meekly. “Am I interrupting your practice time?”

“No, it’s cool. We were just messing around in here,” Jaemin replied. “Are you looking for someone?”

You looked into Jaemin’s eyes and your thoughts slowed. He made you feel safe, warm, but that was all; there was no fire, no rage, no heat. It was just a shallow attraction that fizzled out, leaving you neither satisfied nor dissatisfied. And you clawed at your brain as you wondered what you were getting at, but you knew. You knew it was all going back to Jaehyun.

And it pissed you off.

“I was looking for Jaehyun,” you said, “if he happened to be in here.”

“He told me he was going for a swim,” Jaemin said, and that was all you needed.

Before Jaemin could respond, you thanked him and turned on your heel. The pool was in a separate building, and there was no training that even required swimming, so it made no sense for Jaehyun to be there. You let out a frustrated sigh. Even when he wasn’t doing anything in particular to annoy you, it still managed to anger you.

You weren’t going to let Jaehyun do what he wanted this time. This was merely for interrogation—your own personal gain. Then, you thought it over some more, and you reasonably concluded that there was a 97.5% chance that you would not lay a finger on him, but there was a 2.5% chance you’d cave.

When you got to the facility where the pool was, you were entranced by the renovation at first. The pool was massive and the equipment was lined up so neatly along the walls. You peered through the glass to see the pool completely empty save for Jaehyun in the hot tub.

He met your eyes while you opened the door to the pool. His eyebrow arched at your entrance but a smirk settled on his lips as you neared him. You tried to push down your lust; you were not letting him get to you again. You crouched down by the side of the pool and Jaehyun moved so he was facing you, holding onto the edge of the hot tub.

“What brings you here?’ he asked, playfully flicking some water in your direction.

You flinched and scrunched up your nose at his action. “I heard you don’t do hookups.”

“You heard correctly.”

“So what am I?”

“You’re Y/N.”

You were a coward. Admittedly, you had probably always been running away from your own problems, deflecting your feelings with unbridled hate that had no direction, no meaning. Underneath your blunt and fiery front was pure cowardice. Even now, you refused to admit anything to yourself.

You didn’t want to accept that maybe you actually liked Jeong Jaehyun.

Maybe you’ve always liked him.

“Don’t be stupid, Jaehyun,” you grumbled. “You’ve always hated me.”

“I think you just want to believe I hate you. Is that how you suppress your feelings?”

“How long have you liked me for, then? Days?”

“Years.”

You paused for a moment as you recounted your interactions with Jaehyun. It was true that he never explicitly said he hated you and that you always started the arguments, but he was the one who broke off your friendship. Why would he do that if he didn’t hate you?

“You said you wanted nothing to do with me, Jaehyun,” you said in a smaller voice, fist balling at your side.

“You were going to a different university.” He ran a hand through his damp hair, and although you were angry, it was difficult not to enjoy the view. “Plus, you just kept going on and on about Jaemin, and I couldn’t even shut that mouth of yours up back then.”

“So you cut me off?”

“I felt like I was being petty, so I tried to apologize but you blocked my number and wouldn’t let me come near you,” Jaehyun deadpanned. He reached forward and grabbed your wrists, pulling you closer to him. You teetered on the balls of your feet, swallowing hard. “Forgive me?”

“No.”

Jaehyun rose up a little so he was eye-to-eye with you. He smiled at your flustered expression and cupped your cheek with his wet hand. Every muscle in your body was telling you to pull away but you couldn’t. Not when his lips were so close, when his eyes were boring into yours.

“Forgive me,” he repeated in a gentler tone, but it became more of an order than a question.

“Make me,” you whispered and Jaehyun groaned, somewhat helplessly.

“You’re going to be the death of me, I swear.”

You opened your mouth to say something more, but you couldn’t even form your words as Jaehyun yanked you forward and sealed your lips with a kiss. Before, you had the sense to try and push him away, but now you were held captive. He slid his tongue past your lips and you let out an appreciative whimper, hand sliding into his wet hair. You tugged at his hair and this time, Jaehyun was the one to react.

He pulled away for a moment to catch his breath, eyes clouding over with lust. “Get in with me,” he said, voice rumbling. You shivered as he dragged his lips down to your jaw; you could feel his voice reverberate down your spine and to your feet.

“What if someone walks in?” you asked in a daze.

“There’s no use for the swim facility, so no one’s going to walk in on us,” he persuaded. “Come in.”

Water dripped from his neck, landing on your thigh. You took in a sharp breath as his hand tugged at your waist. While the pleading look on his face was priceless, you couldn’t even ridicule him because you were at your limit, too. You let out an irritated sigh when you realized you gave into that 2.5% of you caving.

You responded by pulling off your shirt, tossing it to the side where Jaehyun had left his shoes and towel. Jaehyun watched you as you fiddled with the clamp of your bra. Meanwhile, his hands went to the waistband of your sweats, making you shudder as he tugged them down at the sides. You raised your hips to help him get them off and, after removing your bra, you were only left in your underwear to protect you from his hungry gaze.

You weren’t the type to hook up with guys. Hell, you weren’t the type to even show a guy your ankle if he asked. You thought you’d feel insecure with Jaehyun eyeing you in your full glory, but there was none of that. You wanted to know why it was so different with him but maybe it was the way he looked at you like he just wanted to kiss you. Or maybe a tiny part of your heart always belonged to Jaehyun, and you couldn’t bury it anymore.

“You’re so gorgeous.”

He mumbled the words, barely audible, but they set you on fire. He pulled you down onto his lap like you were his anchor, and you were afraid you’d get swept with the current, but you let him. You’ve only ever kissed a few guys before, so you really had no idea what the fuck you were getting into. All you were sure about was that Jaehyun could make you feel good and you were having your first time in a hot tub. You only prayed that you wouldn’t pass out from the pleasure combined with the heat of the water.

“Is this your first time?” he asked, gliding his hands down your sides. You nodded. “Then I’ll be gentle.” Truly, you did find his gesture rather sweet, but it didn’t stop you from rolling your eyes. Jaheyun saw and narrowed his brows. “I don’t hate you, but you really piss me off sometimes.”

He kissed you again. It was more passionate this time, but also harsher and messier. You let out a sound that was something between a yelp and a moan, making Jaehyun move his hands to run down your bare back. Then, he planted his thumb on your clit and pressed down in a way that made a muscle in your thigh twitch. Your grip on his shoulders tightened; you weren’t expecting that. It felt different in the water, but somehow, you couldn’t get enough of it.

“You’re wet,” he mumbled against your lips as his fingers found purchase on your slit.

“We’re in the water, you idiot.”

Jaehyun scoffed. “You know what, Y/N, you’re right, I did hate you,” he spat, rubbing small circles around your clit now. You wrapped your arms around his shoulders to steady yourself, whimpering as his movements grew more intense. “I fucking hated how you looked at Jaemin with those love-struck eyes.”

There was a shift in his usual cocky expression. He turned focused and, to a degree, angry. It was the kind of look on his face you saw when he was on the basketball court or during a game.

“You’re the one who told me to go after him.”

Wrong choice of words. Jaehyun lifted you up and placed you on the edge of the pool, pushing a finger inside you with no warning. You gasped, your mouth open to ask him why he took you out of the water, but you already knew the answer; he wanted to feel you completely.

“R-right there,” you whimpered out as he pushed his finger deeper inside of you.

He started to curl his finger whenever he passed over your g-spot, and you had to close your eyes. Jaehyun pulled his finger out to marvel at the slick wetness that coated it. Your body tingled as he slid his finger inside you again. This time, he was teasing your slit with a second digit. Jaehyun had no delicacy, though, and he all but shoved in a second finger, causing you to cry out.

He didn’t even care. You opened your mouth to call him a bastard, but all that came out was a pitched moan that seemed to float up to the stars.

“I fucking hated,” he rasped as he pumped two fingers inside of you, “how you treated Jaemin like he was the only one in the world.”

“I don’t… like Jaemin,” you got out, each labored breath of yours fighting off another moan. “I’ve stopped liking Jaemin after high school.”

Jaehyun’s free hand went to your chest, cupping one of your breasts as he rubbed circles around your nipple. You bit down on the inside of your cheek, unable to contain yourself as the fingers on your clit got almost frantic in their place, and the fingers inside of you were pushing against your walls. You felt an unfamiliar cold fire that felt so fucking good, lighting you up and threatening to spill over. Your muscles clenched and spasmed around Jaehyun, and you weren’t even in the hot tub but you felt like you were sinking.

A high-pitched moan left your lips, leaving you hot with embarrassment because you didn’t know you could make a sound like that. You fell from your peak, relaxing in Jaehyun’s hold; it felt like you were floating amongst the clouds in an almost euphoric way.

“I don’t like Jaemin,” you breathed out, still winded from your orgasm, “you fucking idiot.”

“I know.” Jaehyun pulled his fingers out of you, eyes trained on you as he licked them slowly. The look on his face was more gentle now. With his free hand, he brushed loose strands of your hair out of your face. “You like me now.”

“No, I’ve loved you for a while now.” You didn’t know what possessed you to say what was on your mind, but it surprised you more than it surprised Jaehyun. “I didn’t realize it then but… I think I did.”

Love? Love?

You thought you knew what love was. Something that you felt in your bones, that burst within you instantly. Simple glances, thoughts, and daydreams—something gentle and fluffy, but also emotionally shattering. You thought it was tender smiles, kind words, and little gestures.

But maybe that was the kind of love that led to puffy eyes, tear-stained cheeks, and hoarse voices. The kind of love that was left fruitless with an empty gap in your chest.

Maybe this was different.

It was instinctive, the way you fell for him. Like an effortless intake of breath, you were in love before you even knew it. You always thought love was a monster. Ravaging, scraping, foul monsters with jaws so immeasurably large that they would have swallowed you whole. But maybe it wasn’t the tragedy you made it out to be.

With Jaehyun it was fierce and maddening and made you want to rip your hair out. It was a violent hurricane that you tried to brave your way through. But you were blind. You were already at the eye; you had always been at the center without realizing it. And, despite all the pointless arguments and name-calling, it was the most beautiful thing you had experienced.

Yeah, you liked him. You liked how you were around him, despite how much you complained about it to Mark. Part of you refused to admit it, but sometimes the bickering was fun. You realized that you never let go of Jaehyun before because you couldn’t. You simply didn’t want to be without him because Jeong Jaehyun drove a deeper passion within you.

Your rose-tinted loving moment was ruined as soon as a shit-eating grin spread across Jaehyun’s face.

“You love me.”

“I’ll kill you.”

“You love me,” Jaehyun echoed as if he was internalizing the information. “You love me.”

“I take it back,” you said flatly. “I hate you, I hate you, and I’ve always hated you.”

Jaehyun ignored your words, his cockiness morphing into adoration. “You actually love me back.” He cupped your face in his hands, eyes turning into little crescents as he smiled. “Even though I called you a cougar for liking a guy a year younger than you?”

“Yes.”

“Even though I made fun of you wearing a push-up bra in front of him?”

You clenched your jaw. “Yes.”

“Even though I asked Johnny about you and he told me that I still live in your mind, rent-free?”

“What? Johnny said that?” you exclaimed, eyes wide. You grimaced. Johnny would be dealt with later. You placed your hands on Jaehyun’s shoulders and made direct eye contact. “Look, Jaehyun—as much as it hurts me to say this and I’d rather tear out my vocal cords—I like you. I like you so much that I don’t care about the petty shit you pulled when I liked Jaemin because frankly, I don’t care about Jaemin anymore.”

“That was the hottest thing I’ve ever heard.”

You wanted to slap him.

“Are you just constantly horny?” you snapped. “I’m pouring out my feelings to you here!”

“I’m better at expressing my love through actions, not words,” Jaehyun explained. “Can I show you?”

“Is this another ploy to get in my pants?”

“No, I’m asking you out on a date,” he said. “Sneak out with me tonight. I want to explore the city with you.”

The offer was tempting. In fact, you found no reason to be opposed to the idea. After all, you were always down for an adventure in the city. Jaehyun being with you didn’t sound too bad either, especially when Seoul was so lively at night. Part of you wanted it purely to catch up on all the time you missed when you stopped being friends.

“Fine,” you agreed. “An hour after curfew.”

“Great.” Jaehyun flashed a grin that slowly curled into a smirk. “Now let me get in your pants.”

“Are you kidding?”

“Y/N, you see,” Jaehyun started, “I don’t hate you, but you’ve really pissed me off these past two years. We have all of this pent-up rage, so it’s only fair that we let it out on each other.” His grip on your hips tightened.

You loathed yourself for wanting him, and for putting aside the fear of being walked in on for him. You internally cringed at the thought of Mark accidentally bearing witness, and you weren’t sure you were willing to explain the situation to him just yet.

It was the price you paid for carnality, you supposed.

You sighed in a forced way so that you sounded reluctant and bored. Unfortunately, your plan backfired and you ended up feeling bad when a concerned look crossed Jaehyun’s face.

“If you’re worried about getting caught, I’ll just cover you,” Jaehyun mumbled, the softness of his voice almost putting you at ease.

You rolled your eyes. “How kind of you.” You paused and looked up at him. “Are we really going to have sex for the first time here?”

Jaehyun looked around him. “Well, I guess we could go to the hotel room if—”

“Nope!” you interrupted, wrapping your arms around his neck and drawing him closer to you. “Let’s do it here. I love the pool, love having sex at the pool.”

He rose a brow at you, hands making their way down your body. Suddenly, your realization of being completely exposed had heightened, and you pressed your thighs together. Maybe it was because your vulnerability showed on your face, clear as day, but Jaehyun smirked, further flustering you by tugging down his swim shorts to reveal his hardened cock.

It was heavy and warm against your thigh, but what you were fixed on was the v-line on his pelvis. You traced along the bone, making him shiver under your touch. You were shocked when he grabbed your wrist tightly, holding it away from him.

“You’re playing a dangerous game here,” he growled. Jaehyun leaned closer and nipped at the shell of your earlobe, chuckling as you tensed up under his hold. His hot breath made you squirm under his grip.

Have you ever noticed how insanely attractive he was? Yes, of course. You weren’t an idiot.

Have you ever appreciated his beauty until now? Probably not.

“Just fuck me already, Jae,” you grumbled out as he pushed you down onto the deck of the pool.

In seconds, Jaehyun grabbed your hips and pulled them to his waist. Without any preamble, he rammed himself inside of you. The motion caught you by surprise and you cried out, half out of pleasure and half out of pain. You were definitely wet from being fingered earlier, but two fingers were nothing compared to Jaehyun’s cock.

Seeing his cock disappear in you was enough to make you whimper. Your walls clenched around him, pulsating at the foreign feeling. You were tempted to slap him upside the head for going so fast, but all you could do was tug at his hair and wrap your legs around him.

“You bastard, I’ll fucking—oh.”

Jaehyun laughed cruelly at your reaction, partly to cover up the groan caught in his throat and partly because your attempts at being mad at him were downright pathetic. When you had adjusted to his size, Jaehyun grunted and pounded in you, hitting spots that made your limbs feel like jelly. As if that wasn’t enough, Jaehyun found your clit with the hand that didn’t have a bruising grip on your waist and pressed harshly against it.

“You’re so fucking tight,” Jaehyun gritted out.

“T-then be gentle,” you bargained, drowning in a molten sea.

Jaehyun narrowed his eyes at you. “Have you ever fucking heard of gentle hate sex?” he asked, validating his point with a particularly hard thrust.

Your fingernails dug into his back, leaving hot-white trails down his skin. You were certain you had drawn blood, but knowing Jaehyun, he’d probably feel proud if he saw it. He brought his lips to your neck as you writhed under him, biting around until he found your sweet spot. This wasn’t fair; he was pleasuring you in every way possible and all you could do was cry out as he pummeled in you.

You closed your eyes, sparks flying behind your eyelids as you felt your release rushing to you.

Then, he slowed his strokes down considerably.

“Look at me,” he ordered in a rasp. Your eyes fluttered open, remaining half-lidded as you felt like you were going to spill over. “Look at me when I’m fucking you.”

He slapped his hips against yours again, the sound of skin against skin making you shudder. Jaehyun filled you up to the brim and you were oh-so-close to letting go and falling off the edge. The hardscape was cool but you were on fire, bliss overtaking all of your senses. Your toes curled as you held onto his damp skin for dear life, not sure if it was because he was in the pool or he was sweating due to the heat you both emanated.

“R-right there!” you wailed. “Fuck, right there!”

Jaehyun angled his hips slightly to pound into you, causing you to see metaphysical stars. It was so hard to keep eye contact with him when your eyes just wanted to roll back. Jaehyun let out a groan by your ear, low and guttural. You didn’t even notice how tight the grip he has on you until he releases your hip for you to see the print he left.

You could tell he was close, but he wanted to hold on for you. Both of your breaths were labored as you stared into each other’s eyes, your body moving up and down against the hardscape as Jaehyun railed you. You tightened your grip on him, a pathetic moan falling from your lips as you were falling over the edge.

Jaehyun understood and fucked you through your orgasm, making sure you made the most of it. Warmth blossomed under your skin as you cried out in pure bliss, your vision blurring and refocusing as it flickered from normal to pure white as you rode out your high. You ground yourself back to reality after nearly sobbing out his name, the pleasure overwhelming you. Jaehyun’s eyes went hazy as he fell apart right after you did, and soon, you felt something warm spill inside of you.

Jaehyun finished inside of you and stuttered out a curse as he pulled out of you. He rolled over and laid on the deck of the pool next to you, the both of you catching your breath like you had just run a marathon.

“I have a cute date idea for tonight,” Jaehyun said after a long pause.

You looked over, watching his chest rise and fall. “Yeah?”

“We go to the store and buy Plan B.”

You couldn’t even disagree.

“Sounds good.”

Jaehyun dragged himself off the floor, muttering something along the lines of “shit, that felt good” to himself as he reached for his swim trunks to pull back on. You grabbed a towel to dry yourself off, but pins and needles shot up your legs when you tried to walk. Jaehyun noticed immediately and a smug look settled on his face again, not the least bit remorseful.

You scowled as you slipped your clothes back on. “Shut up,” you jeered. “You’re so shameless for someone who can’t pull out.”

“Oops,” he replied flatly.

“I hate you, Jaehyun.”

Jaehyun ran a hand through his damp hair, letting out a laugh as he shook his head. He picked up another towel from the chairs by the poolside and wrapped it around so it covered your head. You bit your lip as you watched him attempt to dry your hair. It was times like these when he seemed so gentle and delicate, unlike his usual irritating attitude.

“You liked it, though,” Jaehyun said. “Right?”

You faltered, looking down at your feet as he continued to dry your hair. “Yeah.”

Jaehyun smiled softly and leaned in swiftly to peck your lips, but your moment was interrupted by the sound of a door opening.

Mark was gaping at you two, eyelids fluttering rapidly as if he was trying to blink away what he had just seen.

“Y/N? Jeong Jaehyun?” Mark questioned, his voice an octave higher than usual. Realization crossed his face through a series of facial expressions that morphed far too quickly for you to process. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“Mark!” You and Jaehyun pulled away from each other quickly.

Mark paused to think his words through. “Did I almost walk in on a murder?”

You let out a frustrated groan. “Jesus, Mark, if you’re not going to read the room, at least SparkNote it.”

“Wait, so you were kissing?”

“No, we didn’t kiss,” Jaehyun assured, and you felt tricked for feeling relieved for a split second. “We actually had sex.”

Jaehyun’s words ended with a splutter as you elbowed him in the gut. Mark looked between the two of you, boggled. You nudged Jaehyun again with your foot, signaling for him to leave so you could handle Mark. Thankfully, he took your cue this time and grabbed his towel, mockingly saluting the both of you. You were stupid to think you were safe, though, because Jaehyun had to get another last word in before he walked off.

“See you tonight, Y/N.”

There was a long, awkward pause while Jaehyun opened the door and left the building. You and Mark were staring at each other but neither of you knew what to say or how to approach the subject.

“I just… I just came here to find you, and Jaemin told me you went to the pool. You…” Mark started. He looked absolutely horrified, like a corpse had fallen to his feet—no, rather, he looked like a corpse himself, like someone attempted to do taxidermy on him but did a shit job. “Bitch.”

“Let me explain.”

“Bitch,” Mark enunciated, “you just fucked the hottest guy here, oh my god.”

Definitely not the reaction you were expecting, but you supposed it wasn’t a bad one. You were glad he wasn’t getting into the whole ‘why didn’t you tell me? I’m your best friend’ rant, but this was equally as overwhelming.

Mark continued, “Wait—is that why you were late this morning? Oh my god, this has been a thing. You’ve been hooking up with him in secret, haven’t you?”

“No? Well, yes, but it hasn’t been much until, um”—you gestured awkwardly around you—“you know.”

“So you were the one who was with Jaehyun last night?”

“Yes.”

“And this morning before I picked you up?”

“Yes.”

“Are you two dating now?”

“Honestly, I really don't know,” you admitted. “Mark, please don’t tell anyone about this. Especially not those little shits, Chenle and Johnny.”

Mark gulped. “About that…”

Before you could question him, there was a chorus of loud clapping echoing from the locker rooms which was then followed by a few cheers. You grimaced as the two boys you didn’t want to see walked out: Chenle and Johnny, Tweedledee and Tweedledum themselves. They both wore cocky smirks as they shook their head at you, which made Mark a touch more nervous than he was before.

“Have anything to say for yourself, Y/N?” Chenle teased.

“Go to hell.” You scoffed and turned to Mark, narrowing in on him. “Why’d you bring them along? What are you? The three stooges?”

“We were looking for you so we could invite you to the movie night we were having in Jungwoo’s room!” Mark defended. “I swear, if I knew about you and Jaehyun, I never would’ve brought them along.”

You sighed deeply as Chenle snickered to himself. “Well, I guess Y/N can’t come to movie night since she has a date with—hold on, what did you call him again? The devil?”

“Okay, I get it!” You threw your hands up in defeat, eyes closed to show you were reflecting upon your actions. “I’m a dirty hypocrite and I’ve committed a crime worse than death.” You opened your eyes again. “I’m sorry.” To your surprise, Chenle and Johnny had their right hand up. You stared at it, puzzled. “Do you want me to make an oath or something?”

“In modern society,” Johnny explained, “we call it a high-five.”

It took you a few seconds to process their words before you tentatively gave them each a firm high-five. You blinked up at them before ease washed over you. This was how it always was, anyways. At the end of the day, no matter how much you guys bickered or teased each other, you always made up. That's what friends were for, after all.

“There we go,” you said, oddly satisfied. “For now, I’ll let go of the fact that Johnny snitched on me to Jaehyun behind my back.”

“How dare you!” Johnny gasped. “Chenle was with me.”

Chenle raised his hand to confirm the statement. “Indeed. Please give credit where it's due.”

“Alright, fuck you both.”

What the fuck even was a date?

This was foreign territory to you, but even so, you decided you wouldn’t rely on your annoying friends. First of all, you were sure they wouldn’t really be of any help and just endlessly tease you about it. Secondly, they were simply going to gradually grow more stressed (Mark), lecherous (Johnny), and aggravating (Chenle). Thus, you decided to slay the monster of first dates yourself.

Your first hurdle was looking cute. You packed absolutely nothing that wasn’t for the training camp, so you had already failed. Jaehyun was going to have to deal with you in your gym shorts and a school t-shirt.

Your second hurdle was sneaking away from Eunha, your roommate. That was a piece of cake considering how she didn’t exactly care. When you headed out of the room, wallet and phone in hand, she wished you a kind farewell, which you returned.

Your third hurdle was sneaking out of the hotel. You weren’t quite sure how you and Jaehyun made it outside without being spotted, but you were certain he must have tipped off some of the staff because there was no way the both of you could have walked straight out of the lobby without being reported. When you asked him, though, he said it was probably because you looked like the cleaning lady.

Needless to say, Jaehyun was on thin ice.

You loved Seoul, loved the dirty of it. Even at night, the city was alive and full of vigor, full of young people like you who were chasing cheap thrills. Jaehyun was a dream under the glowing lights, and you almost couldn’t believe that the prince-like boy was head-over-heels for you.

He took you to a wide alley with a night market, full of life and energy. Jaehyun was walking through the crowd and you were following right behind him, like some awkward fish swimming after a cuter, more popular fish upstream. There were several times where you almost lost yourself in the crowd, and Jaehyun noticed this. He reached behind him, still shouldering his way through the crowd, and grabbed your hand. The smell of spicy rice cakes, the numerous pop-up bars lining the alley, and Jeong Jaehyun gripping your hand—it all made a pretty eventful first date.

Jaehyun didn’t kiss you. Not once. He didn’t try to touch you anywhere that would have tempted you both into doing something you definitely shouldn’t do in public. There were times where Jaehyun turned pink or looked away from you shyly, and you indulged in it because this was a side of him you didn’t see often.

Jaehyun stopped at a convenience store before you both decided to head back. You waited outside for him, kicking stones as you thought of him. He was undeniably perfect, which you somewhat despised because you had spent the last two years hating his guts and this was an abrupt change. You were worried if he was buying you something; he had already bought you lamb skewers and rice cakes at the night market. You didn’t want to be the girlfriend to empty his wallet.

Wait—

Were you his girlfriend?

“Y/N,” he called when he walked out of the store, holding something behind his back with a sneaky grin. “Close your eyes.”

You bit back a smile and closed your eyes, holding your hands out. He placed the object in your hands and it felt light, so you were sure it shouldn’t have cost much. Although, your stomach was pitted with guilt at the thought of him spending money on you. You opened your eyes when he directed you to.

Plan B One-Step.

You no longer felt bad for him.

“Very romantic,” you observed, putting the packet in your wallet, “but thank you.”

You were seething. Your face grew unconditionally hot and you had to look down at your feet. It seriously pissed you off that your feelings were so clear right now because Jaehyun had bought you fucking Plan B.

Jaehyun seemed to notice right away and tilted your chin up with two fingers, chuckling. “Is something wrong?”

Your face screwed up when you decided on what you were going to ask him. “Are we dating?” you blurted out.

Jaehyun held your face gently like it would shatter if he applied any more pressure. His fingertips grazed the hinge of your jaw while his thumbs rested on your cheekbones. You were panicking when he leaned in, but it wasn’t what you expected. Jaehyun pressed a chaste kiss to your nose, grinning at your reaction. You reached up to trace his dimple with your finger.

“Do you want to be my girlfriend, Y/N?”

“Yeah,” you admitted, flustered beyond imagination, but you had already gotten this far so you continued, “do you?”

“Do I want to be your girlfriend?”

You wanted to hit yourself. “Fuck. I mean, do you wanna date me?”

“Of course,” he said with a laugh. “I’ve been waiting for this for so long.”

He drew you into his warm embrace and you buried your face into his chest, wondering how you hated this man for so long. Of course, when those cocky smirks and impish looks came back, you were sure you’d remember again. But right now, in his arms, you just knew that you wanted to be with him. You looked up at him, arms slung around him, and got on your toes to press a gentle kiss to his lips.

You were positive you hadn’t ever seen Jeong Jaehyun blush before tonight, but it was a sight you were sure you could never get sick of.

And you never would.

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