Chapter Text
"Did he tell you what happened?" Hongbin was asking. "Jaehwan, I mean."
Wonshik ran his nail idly over the seam of his blood bag. Hongbin had opted for a mug, warmed up, and they were sitting side by side on the maroon couch, the velvet soft under them. "He just told me Sanghyuk initiated it, so I couldn’t be mad at him," Wonshik said.
They both looked to the darkened hallway, where Jaehwan had disappeared through after Sanghyuk left. No doubt he’d gone back to his room. He hadn’t seemed to be well.
"He loves Sanghyuk very much," Hongbin murmured. "And I think Sanghyuk loves him too, to be honest. We both saw this coming."
Wonshik sighed, letting his head loll back against the couch. "Yeah," he said. "I did. I don’t know how to feel about it though."
Hongbin was quiet for several beats, sipping at the blood in his mug. The scent of it was strong, because it was hot, slight steam coming off it. "I think it could work out, could be— good. They could be good together. If Jaehwan tries, if they work for it. Jaehwan would cut his own arm off if Sanghyuk asked, so I think he will, at the least, try."
"What about when Sanghyuk dies?" Wonshik asked, feeling heavy at the thought. He loved Sanghyuk too, his protege, his friend. "He isn’t going to quit hunting, and we both know he’s probably on a sped up lifespan because of it."
"We’ll all cross that bridge when we come to it," Hongbin said, gently placing his hand on Wonshik’s thigh and giving it a reassuring squeeze. "But hopefully it isn’t something we will have to worry about for a good long while."
Wonshik sighed again. Yes. They could hope for small mercies.
The phone, Wonshik’s phone, sitting on the coffee table, beeped as a text came in and Wonshik groaned. Hongbin was the one who reached for it, swiping it open to read the messages with a frown. "If it’s Hakyeon wanting to come over because he already psychically knows about this," Wonshik began, "tell him—"
"It’s Sanghyuk," Hongbin said, and something in his voice immediately put Wonshik on edge. "He— he says he needs you to come get him. You and Jaehwan."
Wonshik took the phone from Hongbin, eyes scanning over the message. Wonshik. Something has happened and I need you to come get me. Corner of Sycamore and Center. Please bring Jaehwan. Hurry.
If Wonshik were still human, he’d have chills right about now. "This— is not good," he said, already standing.
"It could be a trap," Hongbin said, eyes sparkling with concern. "Something could have happened and they—"
"It could be, but I’ll be careful," Wonshik said, cutting him off. "I think it’s far more likely a hunt has gone bad. Stay here just in case though." He turned and flit down the hall to get Jaehwan, knowing this wasn’t going to be good.
He didn’t knock, just opened Jaehwan’s door. Jaehwan was sitting on his bed, cross-legged, his hands resting on his ankles and his head bowed. He wasn’t crying, but he didn’t look— quite right either.
Jaehwan’s head snapped up and he took in Wonshik’s face, the phone in his hand, and said, "Sanghyuk."
"He needs us," Wonshik said, and Jaehwan was already on his feet, flitting past Wonshik. "He’s downtown— he didn’t say why—"
"Lead," Jaehwan ordered, clipped and sharp. His face had settled into hard lines, like he was bracing himself for an awful impact.
Wonshik didn’t think Jaehwan had meant to, but he put a compulsion in the order, and Wonshik found himself running, fast as a shadow through the house and tunnels, out into the night. He was afraid, afraid of Jaehwan’s intensity, afraid of what they were going to be walking into. Jaehwan was close on his heels, a spectre in the night. Wonshik couldn’t even hear him moving, but he knew he was there.
When they arrived, Wonshik stopped on a rooftop, to survey the scene. The night was quiet, the street lamps on, and Sanghyuk’s car was parked behind an old pickup truck. There didn’t seem to be anything amiss.
"He’s in his car," Jaehwan said.
"I know," Wonshik murmured, listening hard. He could faintly hear Sanghyuk’s heartbeat through the warding on the car. "Hongbin was worried this might be some kind of trap—" He began, but Jaehwan was gone already, having jumped down to flit to the car. Wonshik sighed and followed.
The warding on Sanghyuk’s car needed to be redone, because Jaehwan went right up to the driver’s side door and wrenched it right open. Sanghyuk gave a short scream from inside the car, looking up at Jaehwan looming over him in a sharp snap before he crumpled forward, reaching out. His face was blotchy and streaked with tears.
Jaehwan kneeled on the asphalt beside him, letting Sanghyuk fall forward into him, heaving and gasping with sobs. So. It was a hunt gone bad. Wonshik looked around them, scanning for danger, but everything was still.
"Sanghyuk," Jaehwan said, holding Sanghyuk carefully, pushing his hair back from his face with frantic concern. "Please, breathe, breathe for me—"
"Sungjae’s dead," Sanghyuk moaned, and both Wonshik and Jaehwan stilled in eerie mimicry of one another. "He— a vamp—"
Jaehwan was moving, taking Sanghyuk under the shoulders like he was a child, helping him upright. "You drive," he said tersely to Wonshik as he opened the backdoor, settling Sanghyuk in the backseat and then scooting in beside him. "We need to get him home."
Wonshik slid behind the wheel, and found the keys in the ignition already. They were quite a few blocks from HQ; he wondered if Sanghyuk had tried to drive and then texted him when he realized he was crying too hard.
It had been a few years since Wonshik had driven a car, and it felt very odd to be doing so again. In the rearview mirror he could see Sanghyuk curled up on the backseat, head resting in Jaehwan’s lap. He was crying wretchedly, the sounds ripping out of him, and Wonshik could hear his heart pounding. Jaehwan was murmuring to him, but it was clear he was lost in the face of this. Lost and very distressed.
"Which house are we taking him to?" Wonshik asked, "his or ours?"
"Sanghyuk," Jaehwan whispered, "where—"
"I don’t know," Sanghyuk gasped, cringing into himself. "I don’t know, I don’t know—"
"Okay," Jaehwan murmured. Sanghyuk blindly reached up and Jaehwan took his hand in both of his. "Wonshik, we’ll go by his house and pick up some clothes for him, then take him to ours."
Sanghyuk hiccuped. "He’s dead," he whispered, "he’s dead and it was supposed to be me, this was because of me—"
Wonshik’s hands tightened on the steering wheel even as Jaehwan whispered, "No, no."
It was odd, to see Jaehwan acting so— soft. Sympathetic. Wonshik hadn’t thought he had it in him. As he looked in the rearview mirror, Jaehwan looked up to meet his eyes, and the sheer panic in Jaehwan’s eyes might have been amusing, if not for the circumstances.
Wonshik parked outside Sanghyuk’s apartment complex. "You stay here, I’ll snag some things for him then be right out," he said, and Jaehwan nodded shortly. Sanghyuk said nothing.
It didn’t take him long, especially not with the keys, to get into Sanghyuk’s apartment. It smelled— very human, very young and boyish inside. Wonshik grit his teeth, going into Sanghyuk’s room and finding a backpack and opening random drawers to find clothes to shove into it.
He had experienced the death of a fellow hunter before— Hongbin aside, before that. But this was a bit different. He’d not lost his best friend like this, he imagined it was a similar sort of pain to when Wonshik lost Hongbin, in a way. The sound of Sanghyuk’s frantic, fluttering heart was still a drum in his ears. Wonshik didn’t know what to do. What they could do.
He asked for you, for you and Jaehwan. Somewhere in his mind, Wonshik wondered what it meant.
Wonshik grabbed a few other things, Sanghyuk’s toothbrush, his laptop and a book, before flitting back out to the car. He put the overfull backpack on the passenger seat, turned the car back on, and drove.
——
Sanghyuk felt out of time. He didn’t know what to do, how to handle this, he just wanted to stop feeling. The panic in him, the pain, was overwhelming.
Street lamps passed the windows evenly, the car bumping lightly along the road.
Hyunsik had come, had been waiting when he and Ilhoon had come up from the morgue. Ilhoon had sank to his knees, apologizing, sobbing, and Hyunsik had knelt beside him and held him. Sanghyuk wondered if Ilhoon would ever forgive him for not agreeing to turn Sungjae. He wondered if it had truly been the right choice.
"Make it go away," Sanghyuk whispered, knowing they couldn’t. "Wonshik— talk to me—"
"When Hongbin went missing, I wanted to die," Wonshik said, immediate, "they had to put me out, several times, and I kept waking up hysterical anyway. But it passes, Sanghyuk, it does—"
Sanghyuk moaned. "I can’t, I can’t do this—"
"I can glamour you," Jaehwan said softly. His hand was carding through Sanghyuk’s hair, attempting to be soothing. "I cannot take away the grief, the sadness, as I don’t want to alter your mind, but I can at least calm you."
Sanghyuk rolled over a bit, to look at Jaehwan through the tears in his eyes. Jaehwan had a hard look on his face, he didn’t want to do this, but Sanghyuk was desperate. And he trusted Jaehwan. "Please," Sanghyuk whimpered, squeezing Jaehwan’s hand, and Jaehwan sighed, eyelids fluttering as he leaned down.
The pain filled Sanghyuk up, and he wanted Jaehwan to have it, take it from him, but rather than taking the pain from him, it was more like Jaehwan took him from the pain. Their eyes met, and the triangle between Sanghyuk’s collarbones went white hot, but Sanghyuk let himself fall into the lovely depths of Jaehwan’s eyes, craving numbness.
It was an odd feeling, like he was being pulled away from himself, from his memories, from everything that made him Han Sanghyuk. He remembered nothing, nothing but the eyes above him, time slowing to a halt. And soon those too faded, until he was blind, blind and deaf and numb.
When next he was aware of himself, he was in Jaehwan’s bed, tears slowly leaking out of his eyes. His heart rate was slow, as if he was coming out of deep sleep, and his mind felt similarly groggy. It all filtered back fairly quickly, his memories, and he sniffled, giving a residual hiccup. But the panic was gone, the clawing, sickening desperation. All that was left was the grief.
He had a headache. From crying or the glamour or both, he didn’t know. And he mentally felt very— sticky, which was likely a symptom of the glamour.
"Sanghyuk." Sanghyuk looked to his left, saw Jaehwan sitting beside him, above him. "How are you?"
"I feel less like I want to die," he said, voice coming out scratchy. Jaehwan winced, and Sanghyuk squeezed his eyes shut. "I’m sorry."
Jaehwan gently dabbed at Sanghyuk’s face with a damp cloth. Warm. Soft. Sanghyuk eased at the touch. "I’d take the pain from you too, but that would— have repercussions. I don’t want to damage your mind."
Sanghyuk shook his head. "I need the pain. I— I need to mourn him. He deserves to be mourned, to be missed," he said, and his face crumpled. "Oh god. I— I miss him, already. I— how do I—"
"I do not know," Jaehwan murmured. "I— I do not know how to deal with such emotions." He paused. "Sanghyuk, what happened?"
Sanghyuk shivered. "There’s been a vamp," he whispered, knowing he shouldn’t say, that he couldn’t stop Jaehwan getting involved. And he was afraid. Afraid that even Jaehwan was no match for this creature. "It’s gone rouge. It’s— picking us off. It got Sungjae tonight. I don’t know much else."
Another pause. "How many has it taken?"
"Two of us, two VCF officers," Sanghyuk murmured, and Jaehwan hissed. Sanghyuk looked up at him, aching. "Please don’t be angry at me, not now. I didn’t want you to know."
"Because you didn’t want me to get involved," Jaehwan said, a little bitter.
"I was trying to protect you," Sanghyuk said with a hiccup. "I’m afraid of this thing. I figured— I’m a lost cause, at this point, but I didn’t want you to get hurt in the crossfire. You or any of the others." He fisted his hands in the blanket. "But I guess it’s too late for that."
"Maybe not," Jaehwan said, leaning over so Sanghyuk had to look up at his face. "I can, maybe, if you get his body out— Sanghyuk, I can—"
"No," Sanghyuk murmured. He wondered what it had cost Jaehwan to offer. Less or more than it had cost Ilhoon to ask. "He wouldn’t want to be a vampire. I think he’d hate us for it."
Jaehwan looked so sad. "So you will bear this pain, then."
"Yes," Sanghyuk whispered. "I guess I will."
"Will you, at least, let me try to track down this vampire?" Jaehwan asked. "I do not fear it."
Sanghyuk’s mouth twisted. "Yes, because we need help, and because I want it dead." He closed his eyes, saw Sungjae pale and still on that cold metal table. "He cried."
"What?" Jaehwan asked.
"Sungjae," Sanghyuk whispered, voice cracking as a lump rose anew in his throat. "He— the vamp didn’t glamour him. He cried, as he was dying." He opened his eyes to look at Jaehwan’s face, still and unreadable. "I’m afraid, that I’m going to cry too, when it has me against the pavement."
"We don’t know that is going to happen," Jaehwan said, a little fierce. "I— you know I will tear any vampire that harms you to shreds."
That made Sanghyuk smile, though it was weak. "I do know, but we both also know we are fighting a losing battle," he whispered, and Jaehwan swallowed thickly. Sanghyuk felt exhausted all of a sudden. It was going to be him soon, on that cold table, dried tears on his face. And Jaehwan would be the one left behind and aching.
I love him, he’d told Eunkwang.
Sanghyuk reached out, pulled Jaehwan so he was laying beside him, and cuddled in close. Jaehwan held him, skin feverishly warm.
"Are you afraid, Jaehwan?" Sanghyuk asked huskily.
Jaehwan’s arms around him tightened. "Yes."
——
It took time, for Sanghyuk to fall asleep, but not as long as it might have been if not for the earlier glamour. Jaehwan had hated doing that to him, had hated seeing his mouth go slack and eyes glassy, but it had helped with his pain. And that was what mattered.
Slowly, he slipped away from Sanghyuk, curled up and sleeping soundly on his bed. Sanghyuk snuffled, burrowing down a bit more before stilling again, and Jaehwan exhaled softly.
Sanghyuk’s phone was on the nightstand. Jaehwan took it, left the bedroom and went into the livingroom.
Wonshik was there, pacing, while Hongbin watched him from his perch on the couch. They both looked at Jaehwan in an eerie snap as he walked into the room.
"How is he?" Hongbin asked.
"He sleeps," Jaehwan said, swiping Sanghyuk’s phone open and flicking through his text conversations until he got to Ilhoon’s. "He will most likely not wake again for many hours, but watch over him anyway, please. I have somewhere to go."
"Jaehwan—" Wonshik began, but Jaehwan cut him off.
"Sanghyuk gave me permission to meddle, don’t worry," he said, and then he turned and left, vampire speed.
He waited until he was outside, on a rooftop underneath the stars, before he sent a message to Ilhoon. This is Jaehwan. I need to know where Sungjae died.
Jaehwan moved, running in the general direction he thought was right. It didn’t take very long, for Sanghyuk’s phone to buzz, and then Jaehwan had a proper location.
He wasn’t sure he trusted Ilhoon, so he would tread cautiously here, but surely the little blond brat would know Jaehwan would be helping, for Sanghyuk. But for safety’s sake he flit over rooftops instead of on the streets, so he would be able to keep a better look out for traps, for hunters lurking.
He heard the heartbeat before he even turned onto the street, and when he was above the specified alleyway, he saw Ilhoon, crouching beside an empty trash bin.
"Do I want to know how you beat me here?" Jaehwan called down, and Ilhoon’s face snapped up in search. Even from this far, Jaehwan could tell his face was damp with tears, eyes even more red and swollen than Sanghyuk’s. It was difficult, for Jaehwan to feel empathy for those he did not love— it was difficult even when it was someone he did care for. But if Ilhoon had felt for Sungjae even a fraction of what Jaehwan felt for Sanghyuk, then Jaehwan could at least imagine his pain.
"I was already here," Ilhoon replied, his voice rough. Jaehwan jumped off the rooftop, landing lightly about five feet from where Ilhoon was crouched. Ilhoon slowly straightened, and Jaehwan heard his heartbeat, pounding like he’d just run in a race.
"I’m not going to hurt you," Jaehwan murmured, "you’ve endured enough, for one night."
Ilhoon’s face twisted, mouth moving almost into a snarl. "Fuck off."
Jaehwan gave a one shouldered shrug, looking around the alleyway. It smelled thickly of blood, and Jaehwan was familiar enough with Sungjae’s scent to know it was his. He felt— sad, somehow. Sungjae had loved Sanghyuk, had been the same age as him, had smiled easily and often and he died like this. Jaehwan could smell the blood, yes, but he could also smell the magic, the fear. He tipped his head back and inhaled. He could smell Ilhoon’s grief.
"Can you track it?" Ilhoon asked. "Is that why Sanghyuk sent you?"
"Normally, I might be able to," Jaehwan said slowly, "but I— I cannot smell this vampire." He frowned. That was very odd. He went to one of the buildings at their side, because a scuffle had happened here. There was a dark smear of blood on the wall at about Jaehwan’s eye level, and when he leaned in, he could tell it was Sungjae’s. Perhaps a head wound. There were some splatters on the ground, as well, and Jaehwan knelt to examine them.
This would look ridiculous, but he bent close to the pavement, smelling carefully. Most of this blood was Sungjae’s, but some, some of it was vampire blood. It was faint, but it was there. And it smelled slightly familiar, though Jaehwan could not place from where.
"He wounded it," Jaehwan murmured, "Sungjae, he wounded the vampire a bit, it bled some." He looked to Ilhoon, who was standing several feet away, watching in a mixture of curiosity and seemingly revulsion. "Did you find his stake or— or dagger?"
Ilhoon shook his head. "It was taken."
Jaehwan straightened a bit, taking a handkerchief out of his pocket. He pressed the white cotton down to the cement, over the blood, letting it soak up some. Most of it wasn’t still wet, but he got enough of it up for there to be crimson on the cotton when he pulled it up. The sample would be too tainted to track using magic, but the scent— the scent would be good to have. For him, for the others.
"It took it because it knew you’d be able to track it with it, most likely," Jaehwan said, folding the handkerchief and putting it back in his pocket. He glanced at Ilhoon as he stood. "Why did you come back here, Ilhoon? Have you not suffered enough?"
"I wanted to see if I’d missed anything— if the others had missed anything," Ilhoon said, crossing his arms over his chest. He was still crying, but he lacked Sanghyuk’s wrenching sobs. Instead the tears leaked out slowly for him, a steady stream.
Jaehwan stepped in close to him, inhaling here as well. Magic. Ilhoon smelled strongly of magic, various kinds. His mouth smelled potently of lavender. "You took a draught to numb the grief," Jaehwan murmured.
"It will wear off soon," Ilhoon said, eyes hard, "I need to function. For Hyunsik’s sake, for Sanghyuk’s."
"Hyunsik," Jaehwan repeated, and if it was possible, Ilhoon’s eyes grew harder. "Where is he?"
"He needed to be sedated, so he’s in HQ," Ilhoon said, blunt human teeth glinting like fangs in the low light. "Where’s Sanghyuk?"
"At my home, safe," Jaehwan said.
Ilhoon looked past Jaehwan, at the blood smeared on the wall. "You can’t save him."
Jaehwan’s stomach went icy. "He said—"
"Sungjae didn’t die for Sanghyuk," Ilhoon said sharply, snapping it out, "he— he is determined to blame himself, but if there is fault, then it is mine. Sungjae didn’t die in his place. Death is still coming for him." Ilhoon laughed hollowly. "I’m going to lose everyone I love."
Jaehwan’s hands fisted at his sides, and he felt his fangs run out slightly. Ilhoon shivered at the sight. "I will find this vampire," Jaehwan promised. "I will kill it."
Ilhoon met his eyes, unafraid. "Kill it slowly."
Jaehwan thought of Sanghyuk’s tears. "I will."
"We’ll be even then," Ilhoon said, and Jaehwan nodded, turning to leave, but suddenly Ilhoon was calling his name. "Jaehwan. Did you— I’m sure Sanghyuk already—"
Jaehwan turned, and Ilhoon had a wretched look on his face. "I’m sorry, Ilhoon," Jaehwan murmured. "Sanghyuk said Sungjae wouldn’t want to be turned. I do not wish to make an unwilling child. I have seen the grief and horror that causes. You do not want that for your lover."
Ilhoon swallowed thickly and looked down at the ground. Jaehwan left him, and he heard Ilhoon begin to sob softly, before he reached the end of the street.
——
When Sanghyuk came back into consciousness, it was slow, and he’d forgotten, in slumber, all the horrors weighing upon him. But they trickled back as his eyes fluttered open, and he sighed, turning into the pillow a bit more.
Jaehwan was beside him in bed, and he didn’t stir when Sanghyuk did, which meant the sun was probably still in the sky. Sanghyuk sat up, blinking around himself. His stomach hurt, and his lips felt dry, so he should probably drink some water, eat, try and replenish himself. His head was throbbing.
He pushed the covers off himself, sliding so his legs were dangling off the side of the bed, taking stock of himself for a moment. He felt fragile still, shaky, but more solid than he had last night. If he didn’t think too hard about anything, he might be able to stave off crying again for a while.
"Sanghyuk?" Jaehwan murmured, his voice husky from sleep, and oh, Sanghyuk wanted to fall back into him and let him take all this from him. Through glamour, through sex, through his general existence, he didn’t care. But running from this would do nothing. "Where are you going?" Jaehwan was slurring slightly, so it was definitely daytime.
"I need food," Sanghyuk whispered. "And just to move, a bit. I’m feeling— not great."
"There’s food in the kitchen for you," Jaehwan mumbled, rolling over, struggling to keep his eyes open. "I’ll show you—"
Sanghyuk pushed him down into the mattress. "No," he whispered. "You need sleep." He leaned down, kissing Jaehwan’s eyelids. "I won’t leave the house, I promise."
Jaehwan sighed. "Love," he muttered, and then whatever came after that was nonsensical gibberish to Sanghyuk’s ears as Jaehwan dozed off again.
Sanghyuk scrubbed his hands over his face, counted to ten, then went to go find this food.
In the living room, his backpack was sitting on Jaehwan’s plush armchair. He’d pick through its contents in a bit, for now he kept going to the kitchen, and couldn’t hold back a snort of perverse amusement as he did. He wondered who had plundered the local grocery store. Probably Wonshik judging by the choices.
There were several cereal boxes on the counter, junk cereal, a loaf of bread grouped next to a jar of peanut butter and a batch of bananas, some instant oatmeal. Sanghyuk opened the fridge, saw a carton of milk, some frozen burritos. This was definitely Wonshik’s doing. Jaehwan probably would have gotten a lot of nonsensical things, like a can of tomato sauce and chocolate syrup.
But they had all apparently forgotten he needed things to eat out of, and with. In the end he settled for pouring some Cocoa Crisps into a very large wine glass, and decided to use a rather large wooden mixing spoon to eat it with. There were no other choices. Sanghyuk opted not to think about what the mixing spoon had probably previously been used for.
"Vampires," he muttered to himself as he settled on the couch with his meal. His eyes caught sight of a little flashing light, and when he looked, he saw his cell phone sitting on the coffee table. He couldn’t remember if he had left it there. He was willing to bet not.
But he would worry about that after he ate. He took heaping bites of cereal in between pulling items out of his backpack. Wonshik had packed him some good choices in clothes, and Sanghyuk was thankful for that, at least. He’d also grabbed a paperback off Sanghyuk’s shelf, and his laptop. Like this was some kind of macabre sleep over.
When the wine glass was empty, and Sanghyuk’s backpack fully plundered, he could put it off no longer, and he swiped his phone off the table to check the messages.
He had several, all from Ilhoon, and when he opened his chat with him, he saw a message he didn’t send, and a reply he’d never seen.
The sad thing was, he couldn’t bring himself to be angry. He had given Jaehwan permission to meddle, after all. It shouldn’t surprise him that he’d opted to do it so directly.
Sanghyuk scrolled past that, to the new messages, the ones meant for him.
Sungjae’s parents are coming to get his body in the morning. Kris is forging the papers to make it look like a VCF death.
That was expected. Sanghyuk closed his eyes for a moment, knowing Sungjae was an only child.
The funeral will probably be in a few days. Kris is giving you, me, and Hyunsik two weeks off. We’d like to talk to you, not today, but maybe tomorrow, during the day. Please stay safe, stay with Jaehwan. I know you asked him to help. I know he’ll keep you safe.
Sanghyuk blushed at that. He was going to ask what had happened, when Jaehwan went to investigate Sungjae’s— where Sungjae was attacked. But that could wait until night fell.
I’ll see you tomorrow, keep me updated if anything changes, Sanghyuk sent back, just so Ilhoon would know he was— alive, if not okay.
Sanghyuk leaned back against the couch, thinking, about what to do from here, where he would go. Two weeks off meant two weeks in safety, theoretically. It also meant two weeks with his thoughts.
There was numbness creeping in. The initial shock and horror had worn off, and now— now he wasn’t sure what would happen. He wondered what Ilhoon was doing, and Hyunsik, if they’d been able to sleep. They would need to go through Sungjae’s things, and the funeral— Sanghyuk wanted to go. He imagined it would be held in Ilhoon and Sungjae’s hometown, an hour or so north of here.
He stared at the ceiling, in a vague sort of daze, flicking through his thoughts idly. The cereal was settling heavy in his stomach, and his eyes felt painful. He closed them, to give them some rest, and let himself doze off. Sleep would be his best coping method, in the coming days.
——
Jaehwan woke to an empty bed, and despite the residual grogginess, he sat up quickly, tossing his senses out. The tension eased out of him some as he felt Sanghyuk in the house, his energy a bright blip on the wards.
He climbed out of bed, padding into the living room, where he found Sanghyuk, curled up on the sofa, sleeping soundly. He looked so tired, hair lank, dark smudges under his eyes. It hurt Jaehwan to see. Sanghyuk was— what, twenty? Soon to be twenty-one. He was too young.
Jaehwan eyed the empty wineglass, could smell the milk and sugar, whisked it away to put it in the kitchen sink. It was after nine, he saw, when he looked at the clock on the microwave.
They — they being Wonshik after Jaehwan had ordered him — had sent a message to Taekwoon and Hakyeon, telling them to come by early tonight, that there was something urgent regarding Sanghyuk to attend to. Jaehwan figured that would get Hakyeon over here quickly.
He rinsed the wine glass out, set it to dry, and then went back into the living room to wake his love, though he did not wish to.
The sound of Sanghyuk’s steady heart was such a comfort. Jaehwan kneeled beside him, placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Sanghyuk," he said softly, "you need to take a shower, Hakyeon is coming over." Sanghyuk made a soft noise of displeasure, that Jaehwan thought was a very appropriate reaction to such news. "You didn’t come back to bed, I was quite distressed when I woke without you there."
"Mm," Sanghyuk mumbled, opening his eyes a little. "Sorry, I dozed off here." He reached out, touched the side of Jaehwan’s face, running his fingertips over Jaehwan’s brows, the line of his nose, his lips. Jaehwan let him, not sure why Sanghyuk needed this, just that he did. "You went to see Ilhoon."
"I went to see if I could find anything relevant, and Ilhoon just happened to be there," Jaehwan said, moving carefully because Sanghyuk still had his fingertips on his lips. He bit gently at them, and Sanghyuk smiled. "You are not mad at me."
"No," Sanghyuk said with a sigh. "I told you that you could help. I just wish you had a bit more tact."
"I fear that is a lost cause, I was brash even as a human," Jaehwan said. He surveyed Sanghyuk’s face, and as he did so Sanghyuk cracked a wide yawn. "You are still tired."
"Yeah, I feel like I’m never going to not be tired," Sanghyuk mumbled. "Why is Hakyeon coming over?"
"To discuss this vampire, I feel we all need to be on our toes. The more of us looking out for this creature, the better." He took Sanghyuk’s wrist, inhaled against his skin. His scent was calming. "Do you want me to run a bath for you?"
Sanghyuk looked shy, all of a sudden, and Jaehwan almost moaned aloud over it. Almost. "Please, that sounds nice," Sanghyuk said. He curled back into the couch cushions as Jaehwan stood, his eyes fluttering shut once more. Jaehwan quickly gathered up Sanghyuk’s clothes, piled on the coffee table, and shoved them back into his backpack so he could take it back to his bedroom.
Jaehwan cooled his temperature down to what he estimated was a normal human level as he ran the bath, trying to make sure the water was at an appropriate temperature. He put in some rose bath salts, because if Sanghyuk’s scent calmed him, perhaps Jaehwan’s scent would do the same for Sanghyuk. He lit some candles too.
"Ambience," he muttered to himself as he blew out the match.
When the bath was full he turned the tap off, going back into the living room to fetch Sanghyuk, who had dozed off again.
"Now it is my turn," he whispered, and scooped Sanghyuk up, one hand behind his back, the other under his knees. It was nice, being able to hold him again.
Sanghyuk woke up enough to wriggle a little, protesting, but Jaehwan shushed him, flitting back to his bedroom before Sanghyuk could voice any proper arguments.
"I could’ve walked," he mumbled as Jaehwan set him down in the bathroom, and he made a little noise as his bare feet connected with the cold tiles.
"You could have, but this was faster," Jaehwan said, putting his hands on Sanghyuk’s hips to steady him a little and then pausing, as Sanghyuk looked down at him, his own hands on Jaehwan’s shoulders.
Then Sanghyuk’s mouth was on his, his hands cupping Jaehwan’s face, and he was kissing Jaehwan like a man drowning. Jaehwan gasped, an embarrassing, vulnerable little sound. Sanghyuk bit at his bottom lip, tugging it between his teeth, just to hear Jaehwan do it again.
"Ah," Jaehwan whimpered, his fangs slipping out, just a bit, and Sanghyuk gave a breathy sigh.
"There they are," he whispered, and he sealed their mouths together again so he could run his tongue along Jaehwan’s teeth, feeling those sharp edges.
Jaehwan let them extend, sharp, full, let his mouth drop open so that when Sanghyuk pulled away, he could see the tips glinting in the candlelight. "Your bath’s getting cold," Jaehwan murmured, stepping back. "And I am fairly certain that when Hakyeon comes here, if he sees you with fang bites, there will be no saving me. Also I think— I think you are not in the best place, right now. I think we should hold off, for the moment."
Reality seemed to filter back in for Sanghyuk, and he curled in on himself a little. "You’re right," he said, then snorted. "Since when were you the voice of reason."
"Since I decided I was going to do things right, this time," Jaehwan said, even though his fangs were aching and Sanghyuk’s neck looked so fucking tempting.
Sanghyuk looked at him for a long moment, and then turned away a bit to peel his shirt off over his head. He barely paused before shucking his sweats and boxers as well, and Jaehwan looked away, because he only had so much self control.
There was the soft sound of splashing as Sanghyuk climbed into the tub, and Jaehwan counted to ten before he let himself look again. Sanghyuk was in the tub, his knees curled up so they were sticking out of the pinkish, soapy water, like little islands.
Sanghyuk put his chin on the edge of the tub, surveying Jaehwan. "My head hurts," he said.
Jaehwan came to kneel beside the tub. With careful hands, he guided Sanghyuk so his head was tipped back in the water, soaking his hair, and rubbed his thumbs over Sanghyuk’s temples in soothing circles. It was getting the ends of his shirt sleeves wet. "Better?" he asked, and Sanghyuk hummed.
He moved his hands to the back of Sanghyuk’s head, rubbing through his thick hair, then to his neck, shoulders. Sanghyuk sank further into the water, and Jaehwan could hear his heart rate slowing. He smiled a little, at Sanghyuk’s peaceful face.
The corners of Sanghyuk’s mouth curved up. "What?" Jaehwan asked. "What are you smiling at?"
"I’m imagining dragging you into this tub with me, clothes and all," Sanghyuk said idly, without opened his eyes, and Jaehwan promptly snatched his hands back and stood. Sanghyuk opened his eyes, laughing softly. "You’d shriek, it would be cute."
Jaehwan was saved from having to reply by the house wards rippling; well, Hakyeon and Taekwoon were even earlier than anticipated. "They’re here," he said, cocking his head to the side. "I’d better greet them, like a good host. You think you can keep from drowning without my supervision?"
"I will make a valiant effort," Sanghyuk said, and added, "and I’ll hurry too, so don’t— don’t talk about anything important before I get there."
He sounded a bit sad, and Jaehwan wished he could take that away from him, but instead he simply nodded and then flit away to greet his extended family. On the way out of his bedroom, Jaehwan grabbed a little wooden box off his dresser.
Hongbin and Wonshik must have let Jaehwan’s loving brother and wife in, because all four of them were in the living room. Hongbin seemed out of it, both him and Wonshik still in their sleep wear, Hongbin’s hair floating in soft tendrils around his face. Wonshik had a flat spot on the side of his head, belying which side he’d slept on through the day.
Hakyeon and Taekwoon, on the other hand, were crisply dressed in sweaters, jeans, and boots. If Hongbin was half asleep, then Hakyeon was on the exact opposite end of the spectrum. He looked sharply at Jaehwan when he walked in, nostrils flaring.
"You smell like Sanghyuk," Hakyeon said, eyes narrowing. "Did you—"
"I did not call you here to crow about Sanghyuk coming back to me— though he has, yes," Jaehwan said simply, striding past the happy couple to flop onto his favorite armchair. "There are more important matters at hand."
Hakyeon looked unsurely at Wonshik, who just looked tiredly back at him. Taekwoon was frowning, seeming to have caught on faster than his long-necked lover to the seriousness of the situation. "Where is Sanghyuk? Is he harmed?" Taekwoon asked softly.
Hakyeon whipped back around to look at Jaehwan as he answered. "Physically no, he is well. He is bathing right now, and should be out shortly," Jaehwan said. "But there is a situation at his work. It seems a vampire has gone rogue, and is, somehow, picking off hunters, both of the legal and illegal variety. It has killed four so far."
Hakyeon might have paled, were he human, but as it was he simply sank down to sit on the sofa, very near to Jaehwan. "These are the worst kinds of vampires," he whispered. "The ones who’ve decided they have nothing to lose."
"It got his old partner last night," Jaehwan murmured, and Hakyeon swallowed. Jaehwan looked to Taekwoon, who was still looming above him. "Sanghyuk is broken over it. And he is afraid. I am afraid. We need to track it down."
"You are asking for help," Taekwoon said, in his soft little voice. "That is most unlike you."
Jaehwan smiled thinly. "I’ve no pride, when it comes to keeping Sanghyuk safe."
Taekwoon blinked slowly at him, in that cat-like way he had, and Jaehwan wondered what he was thinking. Was he amused, Jaehwan wondered, to see Jaehwan so far gone. Jaehwan almost expected a quip, but what came out of Taekwoon’s mouth was, "How can we help?"
Jaehwan felt some tension bleed out of him, as he looked from face to face, saw everyone looking back at him with an open willingness that touched him. Of course though, they would want to keep Sanghyuk safe. They weren’t doing it for Jaehwan.
Before he could reply, the gentle sound of a heartbeat filtered through the silencing charms, and Jaehwan looked to the hallway, where Sanghyuk was emerging from. He had on a soft looking sweater and jeans, thick socks on his feet, hair damp. Even from here, Jaehwan could smell the clean dampness on his skin, the heat of him.
Sanghyuk stopped when he caught sight of Hakyeon, mouth twisting and eyes filling with tears. "Hakyeon," he said, voice breaking around the edges, and Hakyeon was up and gathering Sanghyuk against him in a blink.
"Oh, Sanghyuk," Hakyeon murmured, voice soothing. Sanghyuk buried his face in Hakyeon’s neck, sniffling. "I’m so sorry."
"I feel so lost," Sanghyuk whispered, and Jaehwan felt himself leaning forward, aching to stand, to go to him, but he held himself fast, made himself stay sitting. Sanghyuk pulled away from Hakyeon, using his overlong sweater sleeves to wipe at his eyes, his nose. "I always knew dying was— was a possibility, but I never really thought about it being a possibility for my friends. Not really. I feel like— like I should have known, should have stopped it."
"This isn’t your fault," Hakyeon said gently. He ran a hand over Sanghyuk’s hair. "We all know the risks, when we take the job."
"It wasn’t Hakyeon or Wonshik’s fault when I was taken," Hongbin said softly. Jaehwan looked to him, surprised; Hongbin rarely spoke of his ordeal. "It was— it was my choice to go off on my own, I made myself an easy target, and it was the decision of the vampires’ to take me. In the end, I think, it is always the fault of the vampire. Don’t blame yourself, Sanghyuk."
"He cried," Sanghyuk said softly. "I— the vampire left his body, and I made myself look at it. There were tear tracks on his face. It wasn’t fast. It wasn’t clean."
"It rarely is," Hongbin said, his own eyes sad. "But it is over, Sanghyuk. He isn’t suffering anymore."
Sanghyuk shook his head, the movement a little jerky. "I want this thing dead," he murmured, then looked to Jaehwan. "What did you find out last night?"
"I went to the location of the most recent attack," Jaehwan explained, looking at Taekwoon, then the others in turn. "To see if I could find anything useful in tracking this vampire down."
Sanghyuk came over to sit, and surprised Jaehwan by plunking his overlarge self in Jaehwan’s lap, half on and half off. He curled in against Jaehwan’s side, too tall for it by far. Jaehwan couldn’t bring himself to care, he wrapped an arm around Sanghyuk’s shoulders, feeling the slight tremors running through Sanghyuk’s body.
Hakyeon had that pinched look on his face, but he came to perch on the edge of the coffee table, to be near Sanghyuk. "And?" he prompted.
"I think the vampire is utilizing charms, wards, to keep itself undetectable, and possibly impervious to the wards hunters use. I could not smell it at all in that alleyway, but—" He nodded to the wooden box on the table. "Sungjae, in the scuffle, managed to wound it at least some. It left a very trace amount of blood behind."
Taekwoon picked the wooden box up, opening it, and the scent of blood wafted thick into the air. Jaehwan had, quite carefully, placed the handkerchief inside, hoping to preserve the scent with a stasis spell. Both Wonshik and Hongbin leaned forward, eyes on the box, like it was a compulsion.
"It is mostly Sungjae’s blood," Jaehwan murmured, and felt Sanghyuk stiffen against him. He ran a hand over his side soothingly. "But there are small amounts of the vampire’s as well."
Taekwoon was holding the box close to his face, his nose practically in it. "It is not a scent I recognize," he murmured, then held the box out for Wonshik to take.
Wonshik held the box between himself and Hongbin. They both took light sniffs, frowning. "I— it seems like it’s familiar, but I can’t place it," Hongbin muttered, and Wonshik nodded.
"I felt the same," Jaehwan said, frowning as well.
"It is possible you’ve run into a relative of this vampire, or smelled it residually as you were out hunting," Taekwoon suggested, as Hakyeon took the box, inhaled, and then shook his head.
"I don’t recognize it either," he said. "But we’ll keep an eye out, do some patrolling, see if we can’t track it down."
"It is not an Elimia, I can tell from the scent," Taekwoon said.
"It got through a VCF officer’s warded car," Sanghyuk said in a very small voice. Jaehwan felt himself go still, and had to remind himself to breathe. He’d be no comfort to Sanghyuk if he went too vampire.
"Then it is most certainly using some kind of— charm," Jaehwan said. "But even then— that would take a great toll on the vampire in question. It is on a suicide rampage."
"It’s going to kill me," Sanghyuk whispered, and Jaehwan held him tighter. He tipped Sanghyuk’s face up, forcing him to meet his eyes.
"Over my dead body," Jaehwan promised, and Sanghyuk shivered.
"That’s what I’m afraid of," Sanghyuk said, and Jaehwan’s eyes widened. "I can’t lose anyone else."
Hakyeon leaned forward, taking Sanghyuk’s hand, and Sanghyuk looked down to see their fingers interlocking. "Sanghyuk," he murmured, "we will get this thing. None of us are going to let it hurt you."
Sanghyuk squeezed Hakyeon’s hand. "Thank you."
Jaehwan wondered if the others could hear the resignation in Sanghyuk’s voice. It rang clear and sad to Jaehwan’s ears. Sanghyuk had already given up.
Maybe Jaehwan should too. But he was damned if he was going to let Sanghyuk go without a fight.