Zitao woke with pounding headache, it seems to be a norm for him since lately. The sun pelted harshly against his skin. He peeked through his long eyelashes to view his surroundings. Blue was all he could see. The water surrounded them completely. It shimmered like a diamond and danced like the village girls at a celebration. He was thoroughly amazed. 

He stood on wobbly legs with a smile on his face. His freedom was at his fingertips and he was going to get it. He couldn't believe this view was always so close to him yet he never got the chance to see it. He could've never gotten a chance to with the dragon constantly around. 

"The dragon!" He quickly jumped at least a foot away from where he was and looked at the ground of where he was. 

There laid the dragon, well now Yifan as the day he was born. Small cuts and bruises were scattered all over his body. His chest moved slightly up and down, a sign that he was breathing. Tao sighed in relief. Wait, why was he sighing? It wasn't his problem if he died or not. If anything good riddance. 

Tao turned his back to Yifan and took a few steps ahead before he turned around and ran back to his side. 

"I must be the most senseless captive. I'm saving his life and he's going to kill me in the end. Curse my soft heart."

A sudden blush rose high on Tao cheeks when he got a full view of Yifan's body. He knew it was improper for him to look at man that wasn't his fiancé, but technically Yifan was not a man... well not exactly.

Tao was tall but Yifan towered over him. He was tallest person Tao had ever seen. He wasn't only tall but muscular no doubt from all the activities he did living in the island. 

His length too was something to boast about. Tao blushed even more.

It took a long while before he arrived back at the cavern. He couldn't lift Yifan as he was too heavy so dragging him back was the only answer. Unfortunately, dragging him resulted in more cuts along his body. 

Tao walked over to the rim of the underground cave he was trapped in. The bush Yifan had talked about which he had glimpsed was there in abundance. He uprooted a couple of them then found a rock to mash them out with. 

It took him a while longer than he first imagine. "I don't understand how Yixing can do this everyday with complaint." He grumbled when he accidentally hit his finger instead of the plant.

After finally making the paste he ran back over to Yifan and dressed his wounds. He did his best in covering each cut heavily with the paste. 

When he was finished he sat by Yifan's side. The rain had started to fall and the temperature had fallen with it. Yifan's body was like a furnace, warm.  Tao wasn't exactly fond of being beside a man that wasn't Minhyuk but especially a man that took him away from his village but he'd have to survive to make it back home. 

Yifan woke feeling calm. It wasn't a norm for him with the dragon being constantly angry and raging. But this particular morning it was quiet and the reason for that was lying beside him with his leg draped over Yifan. A cloth, he recognized as one of the many he'd wore and stored in a chest in farthest corner of the cavern, was lying over his pelvis. He guessed Tao was the reason for that. The boy had a thing against .

He turned to lie on his side so that he was facing Tao. He swore he died jumping off that cliff to save the younger. He certainly didn't expect to be where he was with said boy peacefully sleeping next to him. For sure he thought the boy would've left him to die and be on his way back to his village. Back to his fiancé.

Yifan sneered at the thought. He had nothing against the man, he never met him! If he was betrothed to Tao who was he to stop their binding. Tao had prove to be too much for him to handle. He sat up then instantly regretted it when he felt a searing pain in his shoulder. He glanced at it to see the wide cut filled with the healing concoction he'd made for Tao. He nodded his head, his thoughts confirmed, the boy was definitely too much for him to handle.

Tao woke alone. The warmth that kept him cozy throughout the night was gone. Hurriedly he got up to look for Yifan. The taller shouldn't be walking around in his condition. 

"Yifan! Yifan! Where are you?" Tao ran down to the seaside frantically looking around. He found his feet sinking in the sand as he ran.

"Stop the shouting I'm right here." Tao turned to where the voice came from and spotted Yifan at the shore of the see with a long stick in his hand.

"What are you doing you idiot! Your cuts aren't yet healed. You'll hurt worse than you already do!"

"And whose fault is it that I was hurt in the first place."

"You are the one who took me here. If you hadn't taken me from my home you wouldn't have been hurt."

"No, you're right, because I told you to leap to your death."

"Well I'm sorry but I am quite sure I made no mention of my need of your help in saving my life!"

Yifan looked at Tao with disbelief then sighed. 

"I can never win with you, can I?"

"No, so it's best you leave all thought of that behind."

Yifan shook his head and went back to what he was doing. Fishing.

"I saved your life you owe me a favour."

"I don't." 

Yifan knew why the dragon took Tao. From looking at the boy he could tell he was an carrier, a bearer of offspring. Being the of what was considered an adult to his kin, his first drive was to mate. It was an instinct to him. But the life of a dragon was nothing he'd want for any children of his. He couldn't subject them to the pain and impulses.

He always fought his instinct, and anything the dragon drove for. But the day he heard the drums beat and the singing was like nothing he'd felt before. It felt like they were calling him and of course the dragon answered. 

"No! You will take me back to my home where you took me from right now!".

Yifan rolled his eyes silently cursing his bad luck. Of all the carriers in the village why did he had to take the most annoying. 

"There's the ocean, I'm not stopping you, if you want to leave fine by me but you're not going to ride on my back as if I'm one of your domesticated animals!"

"Trust me, riding you is a last resort!" Before Yifan could find a worthy retort he turned to see the carrier stomping off huffing and mumbling about the sand between his toes. A ghost of a smile lingered on his lips before it faded. 

He'd help Tao return home it was the least he could do the boy didn't belong here. However, before so he'll enjoy the others company if only for a bit. He could be whiny and a bit strange but something about him enticed Yifan no matter how much he wanted to deny it.