Sanghyuk stretched out his limbs after delivering his last potion for the day. Hongbin had given him a pretty long list of potions to deliver, something about it being close to the full moon so there was an influx of potions to help the werewolves with their transitions. He yawned thinking about all of the potions he would have to deliver the next day. While sometimes being a time traveler had it perks, he was one of the best delivery boys in all the magical realm, it took so much energy to pause time so he could travel without worrying about being late for his deliveries. He stretched his arms out one more time before making the journey home. Luckily for Sanghyuk the portal stations weren’t too far away and Hongbin had just finished setting up a portal in his spare closet. So with heavy limbs he made his way to the station.

    Sanghyuk came out of the spare closet with thoughts of a warm meal and sleep on his mind. Just as he finished putting his shoes on the shoe rack he smelled the wonderful smell of food cooking. Sanghyuk smiled, knowing exactly who the cook was. He quietly moved through the house, sliding his socked feet against the floor until he got to the entrance of the kitchen. The sight that greeted him was that of his boyfriend, Hakyeon, slowly stirring what looked to be a thick stew. There was music playing softly through the old radio they owned, and Hakyeon was swaying gently with the smooth jazz that flowed from the speakers. Sanghyuk had to admit that he loved moments like this. Moments that he got to see what Hakyeon was like when he was in his own world where nothing could hurt him. Sanghyuk was willing to admit that he would sometimes rewind time a bit so he could watch Hakyeon in his relaxed state, even though he promised he wouldn’t use his power when he was off the clock. So there Sanghyuk stood, taking in the entire sight of Hakyeon enjoying the music with his body. He takes in what Hakyeon is wearing, which was one of Sanghyuk’s favorite hoodies that he had been looking all week for and a pair of shorts. Hakyeon continues with his stirring, adding a few ingredients here and there. Sanghyuk decides it is time to make himself known. Sanghyuk walks over to his boyfriend, making sure that his footsteps are loud enough to be heard by the other man. Sanghyuk gently wraps his arms around Hakyeon’s waist. Everything had to be gentle with Hakyeon. Sanghyuk treated Hakyeon like a porcelain doll, the reason being that was exactly what Hakyeon was.

    Before Hakyeon had met Sanghyuk, he was a porcelain ballerina that lived in a music box. He was forever stuck en pointe, spinning endlessly for hours a day. Since Hakyeon was an inanimate object at the time, there could be no objection from him. That was until his music box was purchased by a sorcerer that took too much pleasure in bringing inanimate objects to life. The sorcerer was very wicked, he would bring things to life only to chase them down and kill them for sport. With Hakyeon the story was a bit different. The sorcerer made him life sized first and, after seeing how beautiful Hakyeon was, decided to keep him alive for a bit longer. He brought Hakyeon to life, informed him that he was his owner, and locked him away in a dark room. Whilst Hakyeon was alive he was still a doll, so he didn’t need food or sleep to survive. Even if he did need sleep to survive, the sorcerer would not have allowed it. He made Hakyeon dance for him every night. Hakyeon did not complain about this, seeing as dancing was all he knew. This time did not last long, however, and soon the sorcerer grew tired of Hakyeon. Of course, he thought it was a shame that such a beautiful doll would have to go to waste, but the thirst for the chase was stronger. So one night the sorcerer asked Hakyeon to dance as he normally did, but half way through the performance he took a swing at Hakyeon with a bat. The blow landed on one of Hakyeon’s hands, and it was enough to shatter the delicate limb to pieces. Hakyeon stood stock still in fear for a few moments before looking at his owner in confusion. Why had his owner done that? Did he make a mistake? Before he could ask any of these questions the sorcerer took another swing at him, this one missing Hakyeon by just a hair. At that moment Hakyeon bolted. He ran out the door and into the streets, clutching his shattered hand to his chest. Hakyeon had never felt the way he did in that moment, but looking back on it now Hakyeon would describe the emotion as mind numbing fear.

    At that time Sanghyuk was making his way home from a night out with his friends. He was walking towards the portal station, not really paying much attention to where he was going after the relaxing night he had with his friends. The peace was halted when he turned the corner and someone bumped into him. His reflexes were quick enough to catch the stranger before he fell to the ground. When he got a good look at the stranger he saw that he was missing a hand, the place that the appendage once was looked like shattered glass. The stranger looked around frantically, and he squirmed in Sanghyuk’s grip. “Please. Please let me go! He’ll kill me!” The stranger pleaded, looking at Sanghyuk with big glassy eyes. It appeared to be too late, however, since the stranger’s squirming got worse after he saw a man turn the corner. “There you are!” The new man bellowed, a wild gleam in his eye as he dragged a metal bat across the floor, the sound turning Sanghyuk’s bones to ice. The stranger in his arms let out a yelp, burying his face into Sanghyuk’s chest to avoid looking at the crazed man behind him. The man with the bat raised the weapon to take a swing at Sanghyuk and the stranger in his arms. Thinking quickly Sanghyuk froze time. He looked down at the stranger in his arms again, his face was still buried in Sanghyuk’s chest. “You can look now.” The porcelain man opened his eyes and turned towards the crazed man, immediately noticing his frozen state. “How did you?” The man asked. “I’m a time traveler.” Was the only explanation Sanghyuk could give before the porcelain man collapsed in his arms, the stress of everything he had faced becoming too much.

    Sanghyuk remembers clearly what happened after that. He brought Hakyeon home and rewinded time around the injury he sustained from the sorcerers attack. Hakyeon explained his situation soon after and Sanghyuk decided to let him stay. That day had been 2 years ago, and along the way they fell quite deeply in love. Just as he had finished reminiscing, Sanghyuk felt the shoulder under him twitch. “Go set up the table so you can eat.” Hakyeon whispered, as if he was afraid to break the silent moment they were sharing. Sanghyuk let out a sigh and swayed with Hakyeon to the music a little bit. “Do I have to?” Sanghyuk whined loudly. Hakyeon delivered a soft chop to his neck. Sanghyuk chuckled and gave his boyfriend a small peck on his cool cheek before going to set the table.

Just as Sanghyuk finished setting the table Hakyeon came out carrying various dishes in his arms. He set them down gently and took his seat at the table. Even though Hakyeon didn’t eat food he still sat at the table while Sanghyuk ate. At first it was to make sure he had seasoned the food correctly so the food was edible, but after he had mastered the perfect measurements for the seasoning he still sat at the table so he could see how much Sanghyuk enjoyed his food. After dinner was finished Hakyeon took the dishes away to wash them as Sanghyuk sat in the living room looking for something good to watch on TV. Just as he decided on what to watch Hakyeon walked in the room. But he tripped on the carpet along the way. Luckily Hakyeon caught himself, but on the hand that caught him he lost his ring finger. After seeing that it was the only injury Hakyeon sustained, Sanghyuk chuckled and patted the space next to him on the couch so he could heal Hakyeon. Instead Hakyeon took his missing finger and sat on Sanghyuk’s lap so he was facing the young time traveler. After getting over the initial shock Sanghyuk fixed his boyfriend’s finger, and after making sure it was aligned correctly and working he pressed a small peck to the reattached finger. Hakyeon gave a shy smile before pressing his face into Sanghyuk’s neck, resting his hands on his boyfriend’s strong chest. Sanghyuk wrapped his arms back around Hakyeon’s waist before turning his attention to the TV. They stayed like that until it was time for Sanghyuk to go to rest.

Sanghyuk slept easy with the porcelain doll he loved in his arms.