Chapter 15

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The final day of summer finally rolled by, making it look as if the holiday period only simply lasted a few days by how quickly it disappeared. It was a time in which students both dreaded and were excited by the idea of starting a new fresh academic school term which meant that for those students who did not put any extra effort into bettering their end of year grades in previous years, this would be the idealistic time for them to strive to do better in preparation for the upcoming examinations.

 

Though, as the majority of most students know, this sudden surge of motivation only really lasts for a few days, if that. It’s mainly due to the fact that there are simply more important issues to attend to in a teenager’s life—for example, their social lives once again take priority as the initial plans to work hard in school just become empty promises.

 

And then end up putting an all nighter to complete assignments which were most probably set weeks ago.

 

Jieun, although was known to have potential to exceed in her studies, was everything like the typical teenager—she was lazy. Implying that all the time and energy she used to procrastinate could be better spent on improving on her satisfactory grades. Not only that, but in most working class attended schools, the stereotypical view of someone who consistently worked hard could only be known as a nerd—someone who cared more about being the teacher’s pet and sticking out as the intelligent one.

 

However, just like in all the cliché dramas, they ended up being the prime target for being bullied by insignificant excuses by envious girls who were ‘sick and tired’ of seeing the smart ones ‘flaunting their intelligence’.

 

As much as she hated to admit it, Jieun was one of the people who stood by the sidelines and just observed as these incidents went on. It was easy for people to call her a coward, being just as bad as one of the bullies, but if they were in her shoes would they have been confident enough to stand up to a group of ignorant, close minded individuals? Most people were only all mouth and no action. Fortunately, she had only ever witnessed people getting verbally abused rather than physical—though it was once said that mental scars were more difficult to heal.

 

She was never really much of a peacemaker nor did she bother much with socialising with strangers. Jieun was probably one of the most anti-social people you would ever meet, especially considering that her preferences included not speaking unless necessary—which often led to awkward silences. That’s why she only involved herself with a small group of friends who she had known since she was a young girl at the tender age of six. The brunette felt lucky that she could say that their friendship lasted over a decade, as all the other girls regularly changed their friend statuses at the drop of a hat without even putting much thought into it.

 

At the present time, it was still dark outside indicating that it was only entering into the mid-early hours of the morning. Jieun stifled a yawn as her gaze momentarily flickered towards the photo frame perched on her desk that was just across from her bed. It was the graduation picture that her friends had nagged her to be in, as she decided to take one for the team and be the designated camera person for that day. She was never one for photos, always feeling uncomfortable at having to constantly feign a smile, which all her friends seemed to do so easily it baffled her.

 

They were all standing in a line, clad in the traditional black robes and hat, all their faces were plastered with cheesy grins and peace signs, all of which caused her to smile in nostalgia until of course her eyes landed on her ever awkward stance yet a true genuine smile adored her face as she was caught mid-laugh. Her friend who was taking the picture, whilst backing away so that he could fit everyone in the picture had unceremoniously tripped over his own robes, pulling onto someone else for support only to have them fall over—which of course caused the domino effect with other students. Jieun seemed to be the only one who found that surprisingly hilarious after being known for having a weird sense of humour.   

 

The brunette allowed a small smile to curl on her lips, though albeit bittersweet. It was crazy to think how fast the time had flown from her high school days. She released a tired sigh, her shoulders deflating as she returned her gaze back onto her beige tinted ceiling.

 

Unlike all her other friends, they would have already moved to where their universities were situated, all of which were scattered all over the country with some even going aboard to study their chosen courses. They would have to accommodate to being around different surroundings with the idle fascination with being in an unfamiliar place. That feeling of finally leaving the nest and the satisfaction of being in the progress of making something of their lives was a feeling that Jieun could not even begin to relate to.

 

Although she was more than happy that her friends got what they wanted, hidden amongst those content emotions was merely selfish motives. She wanted more than anything for them to all stay together and act like everything was normal, when life didn’t get in the way.

 

It was only at this point did Jieun realise that her cheeks were moist, having been stained with stray teardrops. Startled, she lifted a shaky hand up to wipe them away, feeling as if she was jolted out of her reverie, the former feelings of sadness were replaced with foolishness—this was the path that was meant for them just like hers was meant for her. It didn’t necessarily mean that they were parting ways forever, but that eventually the paths will intertwine with the hands of fate when they meet again.

 

By then, I’ll make more of an effort to make friends this year guys so I won’t be alone.

 

.

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The early dark morning sky had gradually melted into a light cerulean hue with the exception of a few slightly deformed clouds scattered all over, allowing entry for the sun’s warming rays to pour out onto the earth and those who inhabited it.

 

Just below the apartment, the streets were practically littered with pedestrians with sunglasses framing their faces and little children with an abundance of sun block coated on their skins in protection from getting sunburned. The shared feelings of contentment and laughter were quite contagious and hung high in the air. All of whom were heading towards the popular destination for the day—the beach, a seemingly appropriate place to go during a hot summer’s day.

 

However, inside of the apartment was a completely different matter. Jieun had yet to come out of her bedroom, still stuck in dreamland as she slept obliviously to the beautiful weather just outside her window. Though, that wasn’t the only problem—the other arising issues were that the time was quickly edging closer to the late morning, and this was the latest she had ever slept in when they were living with her.

 

To any other person, this would be considered normal behaviour of somebody her age. While others choose to go outside, Jieun’s preference is to stay indoors like all the other teenagers who don’t bother trying to fit in with what other people were doing.

 

However, it had seemed to slip her mind that there were about ten devils cramped inside her living room. Most of who were becoming increasingly quite anxious as to why Jieun had not left her room. Thousands of thoughts streamed through their minds as various scenarios played out—majority of which they thought that the logical explanation to clarify the reason why Jieun remained in her bedroom was that she must be ill.

                                                                                                               

Of course, once this reached a consensus amongst them all, the former calm atmosphere disintegrated into what could only be described as havoc.

 

“—I THOUGHT YOU SAID YOU COULD COOK?!” Xiumin howled in evident annoyance, stamping his feet as his lips were pulled into an unhappy pout.

 

“Well, if you would stop shouting in my ears, maybe I could pay more attention!”

 

 “Remind me again why I’m not the one cooking?”

 

“Because you can’t always be the domestic goddess, Kyungsoo-ah. I’m sorry to have to say this to you, but you need to give other people a chance to shine.”

 

There was a brief silence before the wide eyed male spoke up.

“…Shut up, Chanyeol.”

 

“Has anyone gone to check up on Jieun-ah yet?” Suho inquired, he shot a nervous glance towards her bedroom door as the usual smile that adored his face was replaced with a worried frown.

 

“I’m sure she’s probably just sleeping.” Baekhyun stifled a yawn as he rubbed his eyes tiredly.

 

“What if she’s critically ill and needs attention?!” The curly haired male shot up in his seat, his eyes widened as he began to stride towards her bedroom door.

 

A puff of smoke appeared suddenly before Chanyeol, who did not seem fazed in the slightest as he moved to walk past the figure standing before him. The tanned male placed a hand on the older male’s shoulder with a firm look.

 

“There’s nothing to worry about. If she was in any danger, I would know about it.”

 

“Just because you claim to have known Jieun-ah since she was a child doesn’t mean that you have a bond with her. She hasn’t accepted you yet, remember that Jongin.” He bit back, his eyes clouded over with unconcealed irritation as he glared at his brother.

 

The male in question did not even flinch at his words. Instead, he shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly as he averted his eyes to the side lazily.

 

“At least I have made my feelings clear to her. At least I did not scare her into thinking that I would even dare harm her. Perhaps if you could control your bloodlust better, she might feel more comfortable being around you.”

 

It was obvious that he had successfully struck a nerve as the caramel haired male’s eyes shifted to a menacing crimson, his fist emitting a collection of flames which were fully intended to hit the careless tanned male square in the face.

 

Chanyeol, though his natural personality was to be happy and smiley most of the time, had trouble maintaining his temper even at the best of times—though those moments were rare. But when it did happen, he would be careless and act rashly without thinking. You could say that due to the pressures of always having to put up a happy front, he could not openly express his other emotions—the ones that would be considered to be uncharacteristic of his nature.

 

However just as he was about to aim his practically flaming arm towards Jongin, he felt arms pull him away. He struggled at first flinging his arms around wildly, thinking that he must have been Suho or Baekhyun—who were the most calm out of them all and would be able to compose him even in his worst states.

 

“Ssh, it’s alright. It’s me.” The reaction was almost instant. Once he heard her smoothing voice, he felt his vision clear up, meaning that his irises had returned back to its default colour. All traces of anger and misguided jealously were washed away, only to be substituted with regret and shame.

 

Jieun rubbed his back with a concerned look, her formerly sleep deprived state was immediately shaken away once she realised what had been going on while she was sleeping. He bent his head to bury his head into the crook of her neck, his ragged breaths gradually becoming much softer as he smiled slightly.

 

“We can explain, Jieun-ah…”

 

“I don’t want to hear it.” Was her response as she absentmindedly the taller male’s head, causing a streak of jealously to arise in Jongin who growled instinctively as he moved to step forward.

 

“It’s natural that you would argue with one another, that is what siblings do. But you guys keep trying to push Jongin away, what’s happened in the past is where it belongs, in the past. If we were all to dwell on that, how could we possibly even consider moving forward and think about the future? At some point, you all treated each other like brothers, why can’t you just return to that?” She inquired with an impassive look taking residence on her face as she folded her arms over her chest.

 

“It’s not easy to forgive somebody who acted rashly and did not think about the consequences of what his actions would bring.” Luhan scowled.

 

“That’s just human nature though, we all make mistakes.” She tried to reason with a pointed look.

 

Baekhyun strained a smile, something that Jieun did not like to see. “But that’s just it, Jieun. We’re not humans, we’re not supposed to make mistakes, especially not to the great extend that Jongin committed.”

 

The brunette halted in her actions, leaving her hand mid-air for a moment which caused Chanyeol to whine slightly. Though, given his baritone voice, it came out more like a soft growl. She frowned in thought for a moment.

 

I keep forgetting that they aren’t human. But surely, demons make mistakes too? Everyone is not made perfect. The mental image of a demon is the kind of creature that you often hear about in fairytales, the kind whose appearance would be considered disfigured and terrifying to see in person. The kind who would not even hesitate to kill someone at whim, who would delight in seeing the life of someone drain from their very eyes.

 

However, that particular picture instantly diminished when she thought of the boys. In essence, they no doubt had the potential to be like the stereotypical demon villain that was usually disliked. But, just like the cliché quote goes ‘you can’t judge a book by its cover’.

 

“What do you mean you aren’t allowed to make mistakes?” The thought would seem completely ridiculous to anyone. One of the main purposes of making mistakes was to ensure that we would either learn from it or to never do it again. Without that, how could it be possible to learn the difference between what is ‘right’ and ‘wrong’?

 

The only response she was greeted with was a pregnant silence. She was aware of the exchanged nervous glances between the brothers and could not suppress the feelings of confusion and agitation building up within her.

 

“It’s not like you’re some sort of princes right?” She attempted to lighten the mood slightly, as she let out a nervous laugh though it eventually died once the silence continued to elude around them.

 

At that moment, it all seemed to hit her like a ton of bricks. The reason why they were so courteous when they spoke to her—as if she was someone important, their natural mannerisms, and of course the unforgettable way that they were able to draw the attention of women without even realising it.

 

Oh . The colour immediately drained from her face as she averted her eyes elsewhere that did not show them in her vision.

 

They were—frigging—royalty. Demon princes.

 

Of all the things that fate could have saddled her with, she got demon princes.

 

So, looks like my wishes for prince charming came out completely twisted. Thanks for that, fate. Really appreciate it.

 

 

 

 

 

Why couldn’t this actually happen to some lonely fan girl who wouldn’t mind having these guys around? Just when I was able to have make a new fresh start for myself in University, I have to look after a bunch of demons—who ‘coincidently’ turned out to be princes from a completely different universe. She thought to herself for the umpteenth time since she was met with these unwanted circumstances.

 

Releasing a sigh, her eyes roamed around her surroundings idly from her sunglasses. The roaring waves crashing against each other, sand flying everywhere due to the strong breeze in the air—courtesy of Sehun, of course—and children screaming like their lives depended on it as they ran around with the enthusiasm only a child could muster up in this heat.

 

…Well, that and also Chanyeol.

 

Despite her initial plans to stay in her apartment and to remain inside her personal bubble, perfectly ignorant of what was happening—which was the more appealing option of the possible two, in her opinion. Knowing that it was the last day before she started her course at University and that Xiumin and Chen, unlike their brothers did not have the privilege to go sight seeing in the strange new world that they popped in.

 

This is why she found herself being immersed in the mainstream culture in which teenagers her age spent blisteringly hot days on a beach. Being that this was one of the only places they could go that was almost nearly free.

 

The main thing she had to worry about paying for was the ice cream that Sehun and Luhan had practically made her promise she would buy. The combined effort of their aegyo was just the tip of the iceberg. That, and also she had to make sure each of them had some kind of sun cream to protect their skin. She practically had used all of the contents, given that a few wanted more of the lotion than others.

 

Honestly, you would think some of them were girls in their past lives.

 

“Maiden…” She was snapped out of her train of thought by the gentle tone that belonged to Chen, he casted nervous glances around for a moment before his gaze settled firmly back on her.

 

“Why are all these girls walking around half-?”

 

“That’s the clothes usually worn on days like this at the beach.”

 

“…Then why aren’t you wearing it, maiden?” The ever curious Lay inquired.

 

“I prefer wearing these clothes anyway.” She shrugged with a deadpan look, clad in a simple white t-shirt and blue cropped jeans with her red converse shoes. That and like most girls, I feel too self conscious of my body to put it on display to strangers who would only judge.

 

“We aren’t really accustomed to the dress sense around here…especially the girls; it’s quite strange seeing them wearing such…revealing clothing.” Chen murmured, keeping his eyes down as he crept closer to her, his ears were burning red in embarrassment as a few girls giggled at his evident shyness, to which she simply patted his shoulder in comfort.

 

“I think you look fine the way you are, so don’t feel like you are not as pretty as them. As long as you're comfortable, then that's the only thing that matters, Jieun.” Baekhyun beamed at her, like the natural prince he was.

 

If she was any other normal girl, there is no doubt in her mind that she would have melted into a puddle of goo. But given that she was gradually getting used to the daily flattery, she had to keep a rational thinking brain otherwise she wouldn’t know how to deal with all the attention. So instead, a simple smile back sufficed as a response in fear that her voice would crack under the sheer intensity of his smile.

 

“Jieun-ah! One of the kids challenged me to make the biggest sandcastle, help me please~” Chanyeol clasped his hands together with a pleading look, his bottom lip jutting out.

 

Oh for Pete’s sake… “How about Jongin helps you instead?”

 

Instantly, his grin flattened as he stared unblinkingly at her. Inwardly, she sighed at the melodramatics of it all, wishing she was anywhere else but here.

 

“No. I want you to help me.” Sometimes, she questioned his true age, since his mentality was proven to be equal to that of a child.

 

She shot him a tired look. “Chanyeol. Don’t be like that; let your brother help you.”

 

The bronzed male in question scoffed as he shoved his hands into his pockets. “Like hell I would want to help him anyway.”

 

Oh Lord, give me strength to deal with these idiots. “Jongin, don’t be an . Go and make the sandcastle with Chanyeol.”

 

Both were able to protest with similar looks of dissatisfaction etched on their faces but neither did not even have the chance to utter a single syllable as Jieun lifted one finger with a less than amused look.

 

“That’s an order.”

 

Sehun snickered into the palm of his hand at being able to watch the misfortunes of his brothers. Jieun cocked an eyebrow at him as she motioned for him to follow the dejected pair.

 

“I don’t know why you’re laughing, that includes you too Sehun,” The male in question simply gawked at her for a moment, as if not believing what he had just heard. She assumed that because he was the youngest of the group, he could easily sway out of spending time with his brothers, aside from Luhan of course—who are this current moment in time was occupying his time by being the tour guide for Xiumin. But it’s all for their own good. She tried to reassure her guilty conscious for intervening in their private business.

 

In order to build the severed bond between them, Jieun knew she had to intervene somehow. The main trait that the majority of men have is being too prideful, which usually meant that under no circumstances would they be the first to apologize unless the situation was dire.

 

 And even then that was still pretty seldom.

 

“I’ll go buy some ice cream; you can stay with the others if you want Suho.” She made a subtle gesture towards the maniac fire wielder whose actions were so fervent it caused clusters of sand to fly flinging in all directions while the others gave their support somewhat reluctantly.  

 

To her surprise, he merely smiled at his brothers. The milky skinned male’s usual bright smile was tinted with a touch of fatherly fondness before he turned to glance at her with an unreadable look in his eyes. “I would like to accompany you, if you don’t mind Jieun-ah.”

 

Which led to the pair walking towards the ice cream shop that was just across from the beach, a comfortable silence surrounded them as the sun's inviting warmth caressed their skin until they reached the queue in the air conditioned store. Jieun shivered slightly at the sudden change in temperature, but nevertheless fished out her purse from her shoulder bag.

 

Maybe I should buy mint chocolate chip ice cream? She pursed her lips thoughtfully, her eyes flicked through the various different flavours. Or I could buy a few of each flavour in case they don’t like it?

 

“Jieun-ah…” Suho called her to attention, to which she blinked for a moment before she averted her eyes towards the male in question, tilting her head as she did so.

 

“Although it is not meant to be your responsibility for you to heal the damaged relationships between my brothers, you care enough to do something about it. And for that, I cannot thank you enough.” Despite all the other time he would show her his default smile, this time however, his eyes crinkled at the sides until it reached a point where she could feel the warmth of his smile. He possessed the kind of aura that made him worthy of being a leader—somebody that could be admired for their positive outlook in order to strive forward.

 

It was certainly contagious enough for Jieun to feel her lips twitch upwards in response. She gently shoved his shoulder with a teasing look.

 

“It’s the least I could do. Although I don’t know what it's like to have a younger brother or sister, I would be able to understand how hurt I would be if one of them hated me enough to not want to be around me.”

 

Suho blinked in surprise before his expression softened, his brown eyes overflowing with an abundance of pride. Lee Jieun, you really are one of a kind. He reached out to pat her head affectionately, causing her to bat his hand away with her easy going laugh that never failed to make his stomach twist and turn.

 

“Ah~ I’ve really missed this place. It’s good to be back!”

 

The girl in question’s eyebrows furrowed at the familiar voice, uncertainty washed over her. No, it couldn’t be. He should be on the other side of the country by now…Her eyes widened in realization. Then, that must mean that—

 

“Oh! Jieun-ah, you’re here too!”

 

He waved elatedly with a child-like enthusiasm that could easily rival even Chanyeol’s; an eye smile adored his face as he made an immediate beeline over towards the pair. Suho had instinctively stepped in front of Jieun, a guarded expression etched on his face at the approaching male.

 

On any other occasion, the brunette would have happily reciprocated the greeting. Being that he was one of her closest friends from high school, and was also the same clumsy boy who tried to take their picture at gradation. In other circumstances perhaps, she would have acted much differently.

 

However, there was one major flaw that prevented her from doing so. And that was the company she was currently with—not that she would suspect the angelic Suho to do anything stupid, but rather she was more concerned about the more reckless others who did not bother to think about they acted. She would have to carefully try and divert his attention elsewhere.

 

“What are you doing here? I thought you had already moved to your University campus?” She quickly interceded as she moved to drag her friend away as she shot a brief apologetic look towards the confused Suho who looked caught off guard.

 

For a moment, the male standing near her tapped his forehead with an air of contemplation before a boyish grin stretched across his face.

 

“Well, I didn’t really like it over there. Most of the students I was staying with there were really uptight and snobbish,” He complained with a pout, making his baby face more prominent. “So I contacted Seoul University and because they were my second choice, they were able to give me a place!”

 

Suddenly, she blanched at the thought. “…So that means that—“

 

“We’re going to be University buddies!” He proclaimed boisterously, not wasting any time as he engulfed her into his arms, picked her up and swung her around, causing her to squeal out more in surprise than in excitement, which caused him to let out a hearty laugh. Her eyes widened in consciousness as her gaze shakily roamed over to the store entrance. There was no way they would not have heard that.

 

“Put me down, you idiot!” She all but hissed out, gulping as she struggled to break free of his firm grasp of his arms around her waist—leaving an open opportunity for unwanted misinterpretation.

 

However, just as she expected much to her dismay, not even a few seconds later the door burst open with such a formidable force, the sheer weight of the sudden presences threatened to snap the door off by its hinges. All it took was one simple look in her direction and their former expressions of concern and worry had instantly become murderous and livid. Even the saintly Suho did not have his trademark smile. Despite their suffocating, dark auras radiating from their bodies, Jieun’s friend still remained blissfully oblivious as he hugged onto her like a teddy bear.

 

…Just when I thought this day couldn’t get any better.

 

Author's Corner                                                                                                                                            

 

Um, I'm not going to lie here guys. I've been kinda depressed lately due to life in general, so this a/n won't be as cheery and . But I wanted to update this fic because there seem to be people who still read this, so I thought that if I could someone to be happy//or to smile because of my update, then I guess that that would be pretty cool.

I have a few questions, if you guys wouldn't mind answering (if you've got time, of course) since I'm quite curious about what you guys think :)

1) How did you find this particurlar fic? 

2) If you've subscribed to this fic (or if you do not have an account, but still read this), what made you like this fic enough to keep you still reading until this point?

3) Honest opinions now, don't worry I won't go all ape- or anything, do you think this story is super cliche? Or that it can be boring? Or that you hate the author because she updates slow?

So that's all I got to say for now, that and legally blonde is on at this very moment, until next time~