a/n: Hello everyone, I know some of you are getting frustrated with how Mark is. Well, I can’t blame you. I know you will hate me more after reading this, but I do appreciate a bit more patience.

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Youngjae was fidgeting when they were about to leave and it only confirmed their suspicion when 7 month old Changkyun started bawling when Youngjae was taken to the carriage. Kihyun and Hyunwoo made eye contact with Jaebum and Jinyoung and both came to an agreement. Jinyoung took Youngjae’s bracelet, an heirloom gift from Jaebum’s father passed on to him when he was born, and placed it on Changkyun’s wrist while Kihyun took Changkyun’s necklace, an emblem of the X-clan hanging from the metal and was given to every child born in the Kingdom, and placed it on Youngjae. Immediately the two were pacified and their fates were sealed, whether distance will change their bond, the parents can only hope for the best.

Jaebum and Jinyoung felt good being back to their Kingdom and was happy when little Youngjae was received well. Jaejoong cooed at the new born and immediately, Mark felt like this will all end up with the discussion of his mating. Hoseok and Hyungwon greeted Jaebum and Jinyoung, and scheduled the turnover in the coming week before the two leave for X-clan.

“I see you wearing something different.” Jinyoung teased Hyungwon who just gave him a poker face.

“Jinyoung, don’t .” Jaebum warned, because he was not prepared to fight Hoseok at the moment.

But Hoseok just laughed. “I will invite you to the wedding don’t worry.” Hoseok said and Hyungwon blushed at the words of his alpha.

“Does Minhyuk even know?” Jinyoung asked.

“Prince Minhyuk.” Hyungwon clarified. “And yes he does, we sent a letter informing him of our plans.” Hyungwon answered and went to his mate who received him with open arms. “We already asked for my parents’ blessings.” Hyungwon added.

“We will ask for my parents’ blessings upon our return to X-clan.” Hoseok added and both Jinyoung and Jaebum could only smile at that. They knew Hyungwon to be emotionless so it was good to see him go beyond his norm for his mate.

Mark was feeling a bit down even though the rebellion was successfully stopped and he was free from the clutches of the council. He was feeling an empty hole and he couldn’t figure out the reason for it. He looked out the window for a while and saw how gloomy the sky was despite it being August and in the middle of summer.

“Mark.” He heard his name being called and he knew why his father was here. “It’s almost your birthday, I do wish you could find your mate by then, or we will be forced to abide by the contract by October.” Yunho informed him and Mark merely nodded.

“I will abide by the contract, no need to worry about it.” Mark replied making Yunho sigh.

“I do wish for you to find your mate on your own, forcing you to mate with someone upsets me dearly.” Yunho explained but Mark could not find an answer to his father’s worries.

“I am trying, if that alleviates the guilt.” Mark replied and Yunho took his son into his arms.

“I do apologize for what your childhood had forced you to be Mark, I just wished I was more able then.” Yunho said and Mark closed his eyes and allowed his father to comfort him, because he felt really pathetic right now, maybe because he was slowly learning how to be humane and accept emotions.

“I am trying father.” Mark replied and it took those few words to make Yunho understand his son’s predicament.

The kingdom of Ahgase was preparing for Mark’s birthday and it just so happen that Minhyuk was also going to celebrate his last birthday with the Kingdom, while X-clan will throw him his first birthday party the following week. It was chaos and Mark was caught in the eye of the storm.

“Would you like some tea your majesty?” Jinyoung offered and Mark was grateful for the retainer’s timing.

“Are you adjusting fine Jinyoung? How is Youngjae?” Mark asked.

“Apparently, Youngjae has found his mate. Can you believe a baby was lucky enough to find his mate that early?” Jinyoung chuckled.

“With whom?” Mark asked.

“Changkyun, Hyunwoo and Kihyun’s son.” Jinyoung said and Mark nodded.

“wasn’t it the same for you and Jaebum?” Mark asked and Jinyoung nodded.

“We are a bunch of lucky fellows I guess, Kihyun and Hyunwoo were the same, must be hereditary.” Jinyoung shrugged as Mark drank his tea.

“This is not from here.” Mark commented and Jinyoung nodded.

“X-clan has good tea, it seemed that Prince Jackson liked to drink tea a lot and so the Kingdom decided to invest on growing organic tea.” Jinyoung explained. “It was a gift for their future leader but things turned out differently. The tea though did provide X-clan with additional trading goods and leverage.” Jinyoung explained further and it piqued Mark’s interest.

“Trading tea?” Mark asked and Jinyoung nodded.

“You’ll be surprised at how X-clan’s market structure is; they really are a power house of strong willed people and innovative minds.” Jinyoung said and Mark scoffed

“Just because your son is going to mate an X-clan member doesn’t mean you have to lift their chair.” Mark said and Jinyoung frowned at his prince.

“I stayed for four months and I learned a lot from them. I am sure Hoseok hyung had information to share to Jooheon when he returns.” Jinyoung crossed his arms in front of his chest and Mark gave him a fond smile.

“Relax, I am just teasing.” Mark said and continued to enjoy the tea. “I may ask Minhyuk to send me more tea once in a while.” Mark said and Jinyoung laughed at him.

Minhyuk and the X-clan entourage arrived at the palace and Jaejoong graciously welcomed them with warm embraces. He was searching for a familiar face but he couldn’t seem to find Jackson. “I am insulted that you miss Jackson more than your own son.” Minhyuk feign his expression and Jaejoong frowned at him.

“You dare mock your father?” Jaejoong asked back and after a heated glare, the two were laughing hard.

‘I miss you appa.” Minhyuk embraced his father who held him tightly.

“I do too, very much.” Jaejoong replied.

“Jackson is back home recovering and he volunteered to organize the party for Minhyukkie.” Jooheon said and Jaejoong nodded.

“I will meet him next week anyway, I can wait.” Jaejoong said and led them to the dinner hall were a feast awaited them.

Mark felt like he was intruding, having the entire mated couple surround him and talk about bonds and stuff that he was not even familiar with, emotions that he had not dealt with and pangs of jealousy he refused to acknowledge.

Minhyuk gave him a small smile and the twin understood how Minhyuk was trying to do, and he appreciated it for all its worth. They are twins and would share certain emotions, and right now, Mark knew that Minhyuk was being bothered by his own emotional state. When they were done with their meal, Minhyuk asked Mark for a talk and they found themselves inside Marks office. Minhyuk instantly wrapped his arms around his brother; he knew how much he needed it right now. Mark broke down, feeling all sorts of emotion as he felt the omega’s calming aura surround him.

Mark did not need to speak for Minhyuk to understand, they were twins for a reason and it broke the omega’s heart to find his strong alpha brother be this vulnerable.

“It’s been tough the past month.” Mark said while crying. “After the rebellion, it’s as if my emotions are clashing, I don’t understand what to feel, why am I jealous over small things, or feel that there is a black hole inside of me.” Mark continued.

“You’ll find happiness if you let your heart decide once in a while.” Minhyuk muttered while rubbing his twin’s back, Mark could only cry harder. “It’s normal to feel confused because you’ve kept all your emotions locked for a long time. And this distress can only be relieved once you find your mate.” Minhyuk explained.

“What if I can’t?” Mark asked and it squeezed Minhyuk’s heart, it was painful to hear his twin’s lack of confidence.

“You will.” Minhyuk just said and Mark calmed down. Minhyuk held both of his brother’s cheeks in his palms and kissed his forehead, the act a little too familiar when they were young and Mark had fits. “I have faith in you, I hope you do to.” Minhyuk said and Mark was truly grateful that he has a brother who understands him well.

“Do me a favor Mark, can you not hate on Jackson?” Minhyuk suddenly asked and Mark looked at his brother with knitted brows. “We can tell that you dislike him, but for whatever reason, we do not know. Jackson..” Minhyuk bit his lip and sighed. “He doesn’t deserve this treatment from you.” Minhyuk added. “He had helped you out in numerous occasions, is it not the time to actually return the favor?” Minhyuk asked and Mark frowned.

“He helped in the premise of you being his cousin’s mate and my brother.” Mark replied.

“Precisely, can you then treat him as my mate’s cousin? Can you at least be civil with him for Jooheon’s sake?” Minhyuk asked and Mark was conflicted, why does he even hate Jackson that badly?’’

Mark never answered Minhyuk  and the latter could only hope for the best.

Mark tried, he really did but after socializing with hundreds of available alpha, beta and omega, he still can’t find the one, his true mate. He felt empty when he smiled and the pain in his heart was growing more and more as the hours ticked by, and he did not understand why, was this normal?

Mark sighed as he retreated to his own room a little after midnight, too tired to think and fake a smile. He sat on his bed and looked at the moon, it was bright and round and he wished he could find someone soon.

Mark got a fever the next day and in turn, he was not able to join Minhyuk back to X-clan. Mark wanted to come, he does, but the medic refused him and he sulkily lied on his bed as Minhyuk kissed his forehead goodbye and Jooheon giving his shoulder a gentle squeeze. Mark then looked at the retreating couple and found himself jealous, would his mate take care of him when he is sick?

Mark missed Minhyuk’s birthday and by the time his parents returned with a handful of teabags and seaweeds, he felt that he had missed an opportunity.

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Jaejoong made a beeline for Jackson the moment he alighted the carriage and the omega gladly received the king consort. “You look pale my dear.” Jaejoong commented but Jackson just smiled brightly.

“I had been recovering your majesty.” Jackson replied, looking past the king to greet his entourage.

“Mark is down with a fever.” Jaejoong informed him and Jackson merely nodded, he wasn’t really expecting the prince.

The party went well, Jackson made sure that it was and being the good host that he was, he kept the guests entertained. But he felt weaker as the hours dragged on, and finally he retired to his bed and collapsed as he clenched his heart. Jackson knew too well why he was hurting and yet all he can do right now was just endure it for as long as he could, to cover the pain with his smile and to reassure everyone that he was just fine.

But the question was until when? Until when can he keep up the façade? Jackson did not know but he will try to be strong and endure it until the end, and hopefully, just by chance, he could live through this pain.

Jonghyun tried his best to be there for his son, and he assisted him in any way he could. Henry noticed his nephew looking a lot less like the Jackson he knew and confronted Jinki about it, but his twin was lip locked about it only revealing that Jackson would be mated off by October, wwhich was just a few weeks from now. Henry nodded, knowing what that meant and he understood why Jackson was acting in such a way. Henry wanted to help out but Jinki shook his head, there was nothing that they can do but support Jackson with his decision and Henry knew too well why, but as an alpha and King of X-clan, he felt like he had failed to protect a life, and worse was the fact that it was his nephew.

Jooheon decided to go on a trip to Dragon island for his birthday, bringing along the X-clan and Ahgase monarchs. Of course Jaejoong would not miss another trip to the island and within a few days, they were off to sail to the island. Jackson decided to stay back, explaining how he was still not up to travel with his recuperating and Jooheon understood the unspoken words.

Maybe lately, people came to understand Jackson’s every action even if the omega tried hard to act normal. People around him did not question him anymore and it made Jackson feel sort of relieved and scared at the same time; he won’t be able to hide things anymore.

Jackson waved at them and boarded a carriage to return to the castle when he saw Mark riding his horse towards him. Jackson bowed at him and kept his head low, awaiting recognition from the prince. Mark never did and just rode past him, and Jackson looked at the retreating back and held his tears. He instructed the coachman to drop him off at the side of the North Forest, a patch of land that had been thought of the Dragon’s lair for centuries. He thanked the coachman and sent him off, promising to be back before dinner time. The coachman saluted to him and the prince entered the forest alone and with an aching heart.

Jackson made his way towards a familiar path, to where a cave lies and covered by a tall sycamore tree. He smiled, remembering how he and Jooheon would climb up these trees in order to escape their guards and hid from their tutors. Jackson reminisced the old days, and he smiled bitterly, when will he find happiness like that again?

He watched the soft rustle of leaves and inhaled the fresh air, he doesn’t know when he’ll be able to be at peace again and he will savor every minute of it while he can.

But his reverie was broken by the sound of a horse’s neigh and a loud thud. Jackson run to the source of sound and found Mark on the ground while the horse he was riding sped off. Jackson knelt in front of Mark and asked if he could stand up. Mark did try but his left ankle was sprained from the fall and he hissed in pain as he put pressure on it.

Jackson helped Mark to sit again and scurried to find some large twigs to secure a splint on the prince’s ankle. Jackson then tore a piece from his robe and tied the splint around the prince’s ankle. Mark frowned at Jackson, why all his misfortunes must involved this omega, and he figured out why he disliked him so much. And to add to the series of unfortunate events, it had started to rain, just a drizzle but still heavy enough to wet their clothes. Jackson held out a hand and Mark eyed it warily.

“There’s a cave nearby, we can take shelter until the downpour stopped.” Jackson explained.

Mark was forced to receive aid from the omega and Jackson took Mark’s arm and placed it on his shoulder as he wrap an arm around the prince’s waist to steady him. It was not a very long trek to the cave but the injured prince was slow and Jackson was not as strong as he was before that when they reached the cave, they were both soaking wet. Jackson apologized to the prince and set off to find some things in the cave that they could use to start a fire.

Mark looked at the omega scavenging around the almost dark cave and was surprised to see that he had gathered a few twigs and some stone. Jackson started a fire by striking two flint stones and in a few grueling minutes, they had a fire to keep him warm.  Jackson walked towards the entrance of the cave and pouted, the rain was getting heavier and not letting up and he had to inform the prince of the situation.

“Just great, I get stuck here with you, of all people.” Mark uttered in exasperation and Jackson gritted his teeth, can he at least receive some gratitude for once?

“I’m sorry you had to be stuck with me, but what have I done to deserve your hate?” Jackson asked, he was just too tired of this.

“You are the cause of all misfortune and I can’t take it anymore. I don’t want to see you ever again, I just want you out of my life!” Mark shouted and Jackson felt his heart clench tightly but he tried to keep his face straight.

“You know what, I’ll definitely be out of your life after this ordeal. You won’t ever see or hear from me.” Jackson said and walked out of the cave hearing a faint Good riddance from Mark.

Jackson bit his lip and held his tears as he ran away from the source of his heart ache. He ran and run until his legs gave out on him and he fell on the muddy ground. His tears slip down his face but the rain washed it instantly. Jackson tried to push his body up it seemed to be too heavy for him and he just laid there in the ground as he drew his knees to his chest and cried his heart out.

“You won’t see me ever again Mark, I hope you’ll live a happy life.” Jackson whispered and closed his eyes, finally succumbing to the weight of his heart while the rain poured angrily over him yet his body was numb and he was just tired of pretending.

Mark felt his heart clench and he panted, he had never felt such great pain and he screamed out the excruciating pain. What was happening? He had no idea.

The flames was slowly dying as he felt his eyes get heavy and the last thing he could hear was probably his mate’s voice.

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a/n: well my sister was asking me why weren’t there Hyungwonho moments when Yugbam had that intimate moment in the middle of war. So there you go sis, a bit more hyungwonho for you so don’t kill me with your glare.

I will be hiding from you guys because I know that you will hate me with how I ended this chapter. Please don’t hate me too much because I still need to finish this story. So yeah, I hope you could just hold on for a few more chapters until we finish this.

Again, I would really like to thank everyone for your support, it really give me the much needed  confidence to write stories.

Thank you!