As promised, Taekwoon prepared Hakyeon's breakfast. It wasn't anything special, but it was more than what Hakyeon could usually do. Admittedly, Taekwoon was a better cook than him. 

"Where do you plan to go after this?" Hakyeon threw the question while they were eating.

 "I don't really know. I just go wherever my feet take me." Taekwoon pursed his lips and stared hesitantly at Hakyeon. "I'm gonna go and try to find my satchel before I leave though."

"Oh," Hakyeon leaned forward on the table, suddenly more interested in the conversation. "Is there anything important in there?"

"Not much. Just... a few weapons, supplies, basically my survival kit."

"I can let you stay here while you're looking for it. The forest is quite expansive. It may not be easy trying to find your thief." Hakyeon bit his lower lip. He hoped with all his might that he didn't sound the way he thought he did. "Or well, I can give just get you new supplies if you want to leave already."

There was obvious effort to repress Taekwoon's smile, but to Hakyeon (and Raven), it just made him look a little too delighted. "I'd like to try finding my satchel, thank you. They're not exactly important but some of those things, I've had with me for a long time already. I kind of don't want to give up on them just yet."

"Ooooooooookay," Hakyeon nodded slowly, his smile was the very same kind on Taekwoon's face. He thought he heard a judging purr somewhere but it barely registered in his brain.

~

Hakyeon offered to accompany Taekwoon in his search. He wasn't lying when he said the forest was expansive and dangerous for Taekwoon. Although he also learned that Taekwoon was not totally incapable of protecting himself - he was a sorcerer hunter after all. Taekwoon was quite nimble, and despite his slender figure, he was quite muscled and strong. Still, Hakyeon had to use his charm a couple of times to drive aggressive animals away because Taekwoon didn't want to hurt them.

"So you didn't want to hurt that snake yesterday, huh?" Hakyeon teased.

"Even if I did,I didn't have any weapon at the time. It really took me by surprise too." Taekwoon answered as he slashed down a couple of vines on their way. Hakyeon lent him a glaive to help them get through the woods easier. "As much as I don't want to admit it, I'm weak against snakes too. They just really creep me out."

"They're not that bad. Snakes can be cute too!"

"You are the first person I met who thinks snakes are cute."

Hakyeon giggled. "I have a soft spot for creatures that most people fear."

Taekwoon paused and stared at him. Even without asking, he could infer Hakyeon's reason. "I used to think enchanters had it easy... Because they can use their charm to make everyone like them."

"That's what most people think." Hakyeon sighed bitterly. "But most enchanters can only charm one or two persons at a time. Depending on how strong they are too, sometimes they can't completely control someone even under thrall. It's easy to persecute them once they’re caught."

"Yeah, I learned that too.” Taekwoon did not fail to notice the resigned expression on Hakyeon's face. He regretted how he turned the conversation that way. “A lot of enchanters try to hide what they are because most people automatically assume they're evil. But you... did not hesitate to use your charm to help me. I'm really thankful." 

"You've thanked me enough." Hakyeon forced a smile. 

Taekwoon grabbed Hakyeon's arm to stop him from walking. "Let's rest for a bit. I'm hungry." They have been walking around the forest for half a day already and they have not encountered a single monkey. 

Hakyeon looked around and sat on a boulder to rest. He reached down the bag of snacks that he carried, pulled out a loaf of bread, and handed it to Taekwoon, who was just leaning on a huge tree trunk beside him. 

"So what's your story?" Taekwoon suddenly asked.

"Just that I'm an enchanter. That's all there really is to me."

"I don't think so." Taekwoon split the loaf and gave the half to Hakyeon. They started eating quietly as Hakyeon did not seem to want to continue the topic, but Taekwoon kept staring at him expectantly.

"Hmmm? What else do you think there is?"

"I don’t know. What are you doing here?”

Hakyeon hummed as he thought of what to say. "Like you said, most enchanters hide their charm. But I can’t hide mine."

"Ah, you said you have poor control..."

"To be exact, I can easily control people and make them act exactly as I wish if I wanted to. I don't do that, of course. Putting people or even animals under thrall makes me feel sick in the stomach, unless it is to save myself from danger. So I rarely use it. The problem is, I can't conceal my charm. With animals, I can only enthrall them if I actually wanted to. But with humans, the charm works even if I don't want it to. I just attract everyone around me somehow."

"You sure it's the charm and not just because you're actually attractive?" Taekwoon's words were almost whispered, as if he might not have wanted to voice it out. His gaze was fixed on the ground, his cheeks feeling slightly warm with a tinge of shyness.

"I wish it was like that," Hakyeon sighed, almost giggling at the thought. "I mean I know I am fairly attractive. But it's more like a leak of the charm. And when I get emotional, the charm just leaks everywhere. In that case, it's either I take full control of it and literally make them walk away from me, or I force myself to calm down and shut it in. I hate doing the first one because I know humans feel great intrusion when someone else is controlling their bodies.”

"What happens when you slip?" 

"Bad things." Hakyeon shivered just thinking of it. "The effect is kind of proportional to the intensity of my emotions. One time when I was ten, I fought with one of my sisters so my father brought me to the market to distract me. He was hoping I would feel better, but I was still fuming and I lost control. The people around us suddenly started grabbing at me. When I was hitting puberty, there were some guys who would jerk themselves off as I passed by. A few girls also touched their s or shoved them at me."

"That... sounds traumatic."

"It was."

"I'm sorry for asking."

Hakyeon shrugged. "It's not all bad. See, I can live alone in a forest like this and not worry one bit about my safety because I know my ability can protect me."

"But did you really want to live alone like this?" Taekwoon mentally scolded himself as he noticed Hakyeon's shoulders dropped at the question. He was asking way too many personal questions that probably made Hakyeon uncomfortable.

"As long as I'm a dumb and weak sorcerer who can't control my charm, I'd rather live like this."

"You're not dumb or weak." Taekwoon swallowed the last bit of bread and then sat beside Hakyeon. "Didn't it ever cross your mind that you can't control your charm not because you're weak, but because your magic is stronger than that of other enchanters?"

Hakyeon stared at him. "That's... really presumptuous. I don't think I'll be that powerful?"

"You said most enchanters can control at most two people at the same time, but even as a child, you got a whole crowd affected by your charm."

It was the first time Hakyeon heard this point of view about himself. He never really considered the possibility, and he found it hard to believe even as Taekwoon laid it out to him. But it would be idiotic to not see Taekwoon's point.

"I really doubt that," Hakyeon stood up and brushed off the bread crumbs from his lap. "But I guess looking at it that way would make me feel less incompetent." He turned and smiled at Taekwoon. "Thank you."

Taekwoon smiled back as he stood up. "We should go now. We have a monkey to find."

They continued searching for the whole day. And for another two days. They found a few a few troops of monkeys, some of which had stolen a few things from merchants, but none had Taekwoon's satchel. Hakyeon guessed whichever monkey stole from Taekwoon probably did not bring the goods back to his troop.

"Are you even still searching?" Raven eyed Hakyeon suspiciously as they sat on the porch while Taekwoon was cooking dinner. "Aren't you just going on dates in the woods?"

"I hate you." At this point, Hakyeon had gotten used to Raven's teasing that he learned how to act like he wasn’t embarrassed anymore.

"Oh, so you hate me now that you have a new friend?"

"You're not jealous that I've been spending more time with him, are you?" He faked a gasp and cooed at her. "Are you?"

Raven whimpered. "I'm not. Though I'd like to remind you the merchants are going to come soon and you haven't made a single potion since Taekwoon arrived."

"Oh," Hakyeon straightened up. "You're right. I should take care of that too."

Raven jumped off him and let him stand to go inside the house.

"Hakyeon," she called before he opened the door.

"The past three days have been the happiest I've seen you and I'm glad you finally got yourself the friend that you wanted."

Hakyeon smiled, but he knew a warning was about to follow.

"Be careful. I don't want to see you break when he leaves."

He could only respond with a silent nod. They have only known each other for three days, but the idea of Taekwoon leaving terrified him. He felt like he didn't know how to be alone again. It bothered him so much even as he kept himself busy making his potions. 

He barely talked to Taekwoon that night, or the next few days that followed. He had the excuse of having to work on his merchandise so he did not accompany Taekwoon on his search. Even after he was done making potions and candles, he had to stay in the house and wait for the merchants to come. He felt bad, and he really wanted to spend more time with Taekwoon, but he didn't want to help in the search either. The sooner they found Taekwoon's things, the sooner he would leave too. Hakyeon wanted to prolong his stay even just a little.

More than a week after Taekwoon came, things have become routinary in Hakyeon's house. Taekwoon would cook breakfast in the morning and prepare some food he could bring with him on his search. Hakyeon would cast a protective spell on him before he left the house to ensure he would not get hurt during the day. As soon as Taekwoon left, Hakyeon would slip back to his old routine, cleaning his house, working on his candles, waiting for merchants to trade with and occasionally deliver letters from his family, and sitting on the porch with Raven. Occasionally, he would go out to pick some berries in the forest, but Taekwoon also often came home with fruits on hand. Before the sun set, Taekwoon would return to cook dinner for them, and then help clean up after eating.

Hakyeon liked this routine. It felt so domestic. and... normal. Of course there was always that fear that maybe Taekwoon would come back one afternoon and tell him he finally found what he was looking for. Or maybe he would not even come back to say goodbye to Hakyeon and just suddenly leave. Whenever Taekwoon came back just a little late in the evening, Hakyeon also worried if something bad happened to him. And every night, he was scared that Taekwoon would tell him he gave up on looking for his stuff and just ask him for help getting a new set of supplies. He was growing more anxious each day, but whenever Taekwoon came home and smiled at him, he felt all warm and happy.

-=o0o=-

They learned more about each other as days passed by. Whenever they ate breakfast and dinner together, or sometimes as they lay on their backs at night before going to sleep, they would talk about random things. It was mostly Hakyeon rambling about his family shennenigans because that's all he had to talk about himself. Taekwoon rarely mentioned his family, so Hakyeon just often asked about his adventures when he was still travelling, like what places he had been to, or if he got the scar on his elbow from sorcerer hunting.

Other things, Hakyeon just found out by accident - like how good Taekwoon sounded when he sang.

~

Taekwoon gasped in shock when he turned around to set the platters on the dining table and found Hakyeon sitting there. Hakyeon giggled at the cute reaction.

"You surprised me! Ho- how long have you been there?"

"You have a really nice voice," was Hakyeon's answer.

 Taekwoon ducked his head a little and scrunched his face. He was singing a song while cooking dinner and he didn't notice Hakyeon enter. "I thought you were busy in your workshop."

"I got hungry so I came here and got mesmerized by your beautiful voice. I thought it would be a shame to interupt your singing so I just sat here quietly and listened."

The soup was all ready for serving but Taekwoon decided to just grab the ladle and keep stirring, avoiding Hakyeon's gaze. 

"Oh? Are you being shy right now?" Hakyeon teased.

Taekwoon just grunted.

"Hey, I was serious. Your voice really sounds good. I'd like to hear you sing more."

"..."

"Please?"

Scooping up two bowls of soup, Taekwoon pretended not to hear anything. He just proceeded to set the table and then sat down with Hakyeon when everything was ready.

"I'm hungry. Let's eat."

Hakyeon pouted. He grabbed Taekwoon's arm and tugged on him. "Can't you sing for me?"

Taekwoon groaned, blush was creeping from his ears down towards his cheeks. "It's embarrassing."

"You were singing just fine earlier!"

"It's different when someone's watching."

"I won't watch then. I'll just close my eyes and listen. I just want to hear your voice."

Taekwoon slipped his arm off Hakyeon's hold and covered his face with his gigantic hands. "No... I don't want to."

"Okay." Hakyeon sulked. "Fine."

Through his fingers, Taekwoon could see Hakyeon was starting to poke his potato grumpily.

"Promise not to laugh."

Hakyeon's face brightened up as he looked at Taekwoon. "I promise! Why would I laugh anyway?"

Taekwoon sighed. His face was burning so he started fanning himself with his hands. He took a few more deep breaths before he started singing. 

It was an unfamiliar song to Hakyeon, but both Taekwoon's voice and the actual melody were soothing. He felt all warm, like he wanted to melt at just the sound of it. The lyrics felt comforting too. Hakyeon did not even realized that he closed his eyes at some point. When Taekwoon finished his song, Hakyeon clutched at his chest and exclaimed, "Wow, Taekwoon!"

Taekwoon buried his face into his arms in embarrassment.

"You did great! Omygod, my heart is crying right now because it was so so good! I was really moved! I don't understand what you're so shy about!"

"I'm... Just not used to singing in front of people."

"That's a shame! Your voice should be heard by more people! By the whole world, even!"

"Stop it," Taekwoon whined, but there was an undeniably flattered smile on his face. "Let's just eat."

Hakyeon just snorted. They started eating when Raven joined them on the table.

"Aahhh," Taekwoon suddenly spoke, his mouth still half-full. "I sang for you, you should dance for me."

Raven threw a scrutinizing look as Hakyeon's eyes widened in surprise.

"Don't talk while your mouth is full. Just keep eating."

Taekwoon swallowed quickly and drank some water. After putting his glass down with a slight thud, he made a show of his empty mouth to Hakyeon and leaned forward. "You made me sing."

"Irrelevant." Hakyeon kept a straight face as he shoved more food into his mouth.

Taekwoon didn't move. He just kept staring expectantly at Hakyeon. When Hakyeon finally felt uncomfortable with being watched while eating, he put down his fork and stared back at Taekwoon.

"I'm a horrible dancer."

"Liar. I saw you by the lake."

Hakyeon felt the heat rise on his face and he pursed his lips. "We're eating right now. It's bad manners. Not like I can dance here anyway."

"Later then, outside."

Hakyeon let out a desperate sigh. "Taekwoon..."

"You made me sing," Taekwoon repeated.

"Because you have a beautiful voice!" Hakyeon exclaimed. "And there's no reason for you to hide that gem!"

"Do you have a reason then?"

There was a noticeable change of expression on Hakyeon's face from embarrassed to... somewhat lonely. Taekwoon even caught Raven suddenly giving him cautious looks.

"What is it?" Taekwoon asked tentatively.

"I've always loved dancing," Hakyeon sighed as he slowly started eating again. "But I can't dance in front of anyone."

Taekwoon also resumed eating, but he listened attentively to Hakyeon. He could feel the sad resignation that came with every word coming out of his mouth.

"When I was young, I loved watching theatrical performances because I admired the dancers so much. I told myself I would perform in front of a big audience one day." It was one of his biggest tragedies - being unable to do something he really wanted.

"You can't?" It then dawned on Taekwoon. He regretted that he seemed to have asked another question he probably shouldn't have. "Because of the charm?" 

"Dancing is all about the emotions you want to convey through your movements. I told you my emotions directly affect my magic, so dancing would release the charm on full blow. If i danced in front of an audience, it would be a disaster."

The dining table fell silent for a moment. Even Raven did not make a single sound. She knew how sensitive the topic was for Hakyeon.

"I'll be your audience."

Both Hakyeon and Raven turned their heads towards him.

"The charm doesn't affect me, remember? You don't have to worry. I know I'm a little too insignificant compared to the big audience you wanted, but you'll have one and I'm telling you I already love it."

Hakyeon gripped his knife and fork tightly. His heart was swelling with joy and he didn't know how to react. Taekwoon was really flipping his world upside down.

"Thank you, Taekwoon. That means a lot to me." Hakyeon blinked back happy tears, though he did give Raven a worried glance. They both knew how Hakyeon was getting more and more attached to Taekwoon and it just fueled their fear of how he would take it when Taekwoon finally leaves.

Raven purred and gave him a prodding nod. Hakyeon took it as an approval to just enjoy the moment.

~

Hakyeon did not dance that night and Taekwoon did not force him to. They were too full from dinner and he still had merchandise to finish. But he did promise Taekwoon that he would perform for him once they get the chance for it. The promise was enough to put a child-like, blissful smile on Taekwoon's face.

"If you don't mind me asking," Taekwoon asked while they were preparing to sleep. "Are there other things you wanted to do but wasn't able to because of your magic?"

"There's probably quite a few but my mind is blank right now." Hakyeon sat on his bed after drawing the sheets open. "Maybe hugging? Or just touching other people, really."

Taekwoon tipped his head sideward and squinted. "Touching is overrated."

"Right," Hakyeon chuckled. "You said don't like being touched, didn't you?" Then he sighed as he stared dreamily at the chandelier lights. "I remember being envious of my siblings who got to casually cling onto their friends."

"Does touching trigger the charm too?"

"Not really. It's just that I couldn't make any friends so I did not have anyone to cling on to. There's a huge between my siblings and I. We're close enough as family, but we don't really cuddle and stuff like that. So whenever I see how comfortable they were with their friends, I felt a little touch-deprived. You know, those little things, when they slap each other on the arm when they laugh too hard, link their arms together as they walked, hug each other for comfort... I never experienced those things because the charm always got in the way of me trying to befriend anyone."

"You touched me... earlier."

"What?" Hakyeon blinked, trying to recall what he had done. "I did?"

"When you were asking me to sing, you were tugging on my arm." The pink tinge on Taekwoon's cheeks had become almost became a daily sight. He really was too easily flustered.

"Oh," Hakyeon let his jaw drop, his eyes drifting to his side, away from Taekwoon. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize."

"It's fine. Don't worry about it." 

"No, you clearly said you didn't like to get touched."

"In general," Taekwoon slipped himself under the blanket. "I don't like touching in general."

Hakyeon squinted at him, trying to figure out his point. "Yeah, so I'm sorry. I won't do it again."

"It's fine," Taekwoon repeated. The blanket was high enough to cover most of his face, so Hakyeon could only see his eyes. "It's fine if it's you... I don't mind."

Hakyeon bit back a smile, knowing Raven was throwing him a half-judging, half-cringing look. "If you say something like that, I might get the wrong idea, you know. I won't hold myself back."

"I said it's okay. You can do what you want." Taekwoon raised his blanket higher and covered his whole face as he turned his back on Hakyeon. "I'm going to sleep now. Goodnight!" His last words were said so hurriedly that it almost sounded slurred, but Hakyeon very much understood him.

Butterflies in his stomach would be an understatement. Hakyeon was high on the clouds. He knew he was in the danger of falling really hard, but he couldn't help himself. Just when he thought he couldn't get more moved, Taekwoon just kept tugging on his heart. 

Raven nudged his arm. Hakyeon expected another stern warning or at least a worried look, but he was met with a teasing smile instead. He giggled as he scratched her chin and she gave him a knowing look. He hugged her as they lay on the bed.

"Do you think this is okay?" He whispered really softly into her ear, deep into the night, when he thought Taekwoon was already sleeping.

"It's not like you can stop, can you?" She whispered back.

"I'm scared." Hakyeon admitted. He was happy - way happier than he thought he should be. That meant he was also scared of the wheels suddenly turning. If that happiness was suddenly taken away from him, he wouldn't know what to do.

"For now, just take it as it is."

Hakyeon hummed and patted her head.

"The handsome merchant is coming tomorrow, right?"

"Hongbin? Yeah. What about him suddenly?"

Raven turned to glance at Taekwoon who was laying still under his blanket. She turned back to Hakyeon sounding a little more serious. "I've been curious about something. Maybe you could ask him."

-=o0o=-

"Have you ever heard of charm resistance jewels?"

Hongbin was surprised by the sudden question, but he smiled his big dimpled smile as he set two trading boxes on Hakyeon's ledge board.

Taekwoon left early that day, and Hakyeon just sat at the porch waiting for Hongbin for their weekly trade.

"Of course I have." He slipped a hand through the lapel of his top garment and pulled out a jewel hanging around his neck.

"What?!" Hakyeon crossed the ledge and stepped towards Hongbin, inspecting the jewel closely. It was a thumb-sized red gem, shaped like a water droplet, different from Taekwoon's tiny blue stones. "You've always had this?"

"It's not just me. It’s a must-have for most merchants because we deal with different types of sorcerers. It's not just for charm. It also has a little bit of resistance to other types of magic.”

“Do they all look and work differently? My friend has blue ones.”

“I’m not sure. These stones are naturally mined and sold in underground markets for a high price because of its rarity and value. I heard there’s also a type that can be created by powerful sorcerers, but ever since I started peddling, I’ve only seen this kind of resistance jewel.”

“Wow, I’ve never heard of this.”

“We usually don't talk about it because well, it's some sort of protection for us."

"Protection... from us..." Hakyeon didn't realize he said it out loud. It was just a fleeting thought, but Hongbin got all worried about him.

"Hey," He slipped the jewel back under his clothes. "Even if I didn't have this, I'd still come here to trade with you."

Hakyeon smiled, but as he looked at Hongbin, he finally noticed the blush that had crept on his face from the moment Hakyeon crossed the ledge to approach him.

"You had this thing the whole time? But you still get charmed a lot?"

"There's only so much that the gem could do. If the sorcerer holds greater power, the gem sometimes becomes useless. The great Cha Hakyeon is too much for any gem." Hongbin intended to tease, but Hakyeon was too anxious to laugh about it.

"Oh," He hurriedly went back behind the ledge. "I'm sorry."

Hongbin rolled his eyes. "You always apologize unnecessarily. It annoys me more than your charm slip-ups." He grunted as he picked up Hakyeon's goods and carried it to his wagon. "I don't know about you, and I hate to say mushy things like this, but I consider you my friend. Even when your control slips, I trust you and I feel safe with you. "

"Thank you," Hakyeon smiled as he watched Hongbin prepare to leave. "I think of you as a friend too."

"If that's the case, stop beating yourself up over your tiny slip ups and just work on those candles. Business is doing great lately. At this rate, we'll get rich in no time. Expect me to be back soon."

"Told you he was your friend." Raven purred after Hongbin left. Hakyeon smiled and scratched her head but didn't answer.

He was greatly touched to hear how Hongbin truly saw him as, with or without the charm. He felt a little more at ease, knowing that he had a friend in Hongbin. But his conversation with Hongbin left him thinking about his magic again.

When Taekwoon first suggested that his charm was stronger than other enchanters’, he just took it as a way to make himself feel better. After learning about resistance gems from Hongbin, Hakyeon now considers it as a possibility. But then again, his charm never actually affected Taekwoon.

Hakyeon suddenly froze. Did he?

Raven whimpered as she rubbed her head against Hakyeon’s leg. Hakyeon just stopped walking halfway to his workshop while carrying a heavy box of goods. “Are you okay?”

“Y-yeah,” Hakyeon answered and dragged himself to keep walking. He dropped the box on his working table with a loud thud, which worried Raven even more. Hakyeon was never careless with potion ingredients.

Hakyeon just sat for a long while just re-thinking things. Taekwoon said his stones were pretty effective. But if Hakyeon’s charm was strong enough to still affect Hongbin, was it possible that he had also affected Taekwoon? Had he been too relaxed around Taekwoon? He believed the gems were effective enough that he almost did not bother concealing his charm when they were alone. What if all those times Taekwoon blushed were because of Hakyeon’s magic? What if the way Taekwoon treated him was only an effect of the charm?

Hakyeon felt cold sweat on his temples. Raven purred beside him. When Hakyeon told her what was bothering him, she stared at just him blankly for a whole minute.

“Say something,” Hakyeon pleaded. He was desperate for someone to tell him he was wrong.

“I don’t know what to say.”

“You think it’s possible?”

“It’s not impossible. I wanted you to ask Hongbin about the stones exactly because of this. ”

Hakyeon growled as he dropped his head on the table and grabbed a handful of his hair.

“But I don’t think that’s the case.”

Hakyeon raised his head hopefully. “You think?”

“First off, they have different kinds of gems. Maybe they also have different limits. Maybe you should ask Taekwoon where he got his. Secondly, just like Hongbin, even without the resistance gems, I think Taekwoon would still be your friend.”

Hakyeon straightened up a bit. “Maybe… Yes… I think we’re friends… but…” He bit his lip. Really hard. It was stupid. Really very stupid. “The things that he says… I just… I wonder if it was really him or just what I wanted to hear from him.”

Raven looked at him sadly. “Hakyeon…”

Hakyeon pulled on his hair harder. His heart was racing and he wanted to cry. He had been scared of all the things that could go wrong from the moment Taekwoon came into his life, and now there's a possibility that those fears had been real all this time.

"Hakyeon, you need to calm down," Raven pawed at him. "If you get worked up like this, you won't be able to ask him anything without the charm going berserk.

"Can't you ask him for me? I'll leave the house and go somewhere far where my charm won't reach him and you talk to him."

"I'll do that only if we don't have any other option left. But you should try to talk to him first. If he shows any sign of of being bewitched, I'll step in immediately and you can leave."

It frustrated Hakyeon so much. He growled louder and banged his head lightly against the table a couple of times. "I don't know how to talk to him now. I'm scared, Raven."

"Just try to calm down, please."

There was no way Hakyeon could calm down. His hands were trembling and he could feel his tears were about to spill. "If..." Even his voice was starting to shake. "If it's true... If he's actually affected by the charm, I have to send him away... Don't I?"

"We don't know that yet, Hakyeon-"

"But if it is!" Hakyeon's tears started rolling down his face. He clutched his fists to stop his hands from trembling and heaved heavily. He did not want Taekwoon to leave, but if he was holding Taekwoon captive with his magic, it would be so wrong to make him stay. 

"He can't stay here anymore."