/author comes in shyly/
Hi guysss... It's been a while ^^'
I'm really sorry I didn't update this story for so long! I don't even know why or how it happened... I've been very busy with school and I had a few... erhh... situations... I'll be very busy for the next months too, but I promise I won't neglect this story for months again!
Thank you so much for being patient with me and for supporting this story!
I hope you'll enjoy this chapter! :)

          The next morning, Donghae woke up to the feeling of fingers playing with his hair and a sweet voice calling his name. He slowly awakened, progressively drifting out of sleep, his breath soft and steady. His eyes remained as always tightly shut but his other senses started to work again, making him aware of his surroundings.

"Donghae", Hyukjae's honey-like voice called him again, creating a warm and strange tickling feeling in his chest. "Wake up."

Gentle fingers ran across his long hair, pushed a few locks out of his face, then moved to his face and softly poked his cheek. Donghae heaved a little sigh of contentment and leaned closer to the warm hand, seeking for more contact. Hyukjae quietly laughed at his reaction, making Donghae's heart flutter from the beautiful sound.

"Donghae, wake up."

"I'm awake", he muttered in a whisper. He carefully lifted his head, then his upper body, until he was sitting on the bed.

"How do you feel?" Hyukjae asked. His hand came to press itself against his forehead to check for any fever.

"I'm fine", the cursed boy replied with a small smile.

The fever was definitively gone and his body wasn't so much aching anymore. He had peacefully slept the whole night and had recovered most of his strength. He was still tired of course, years of confinement and depression had weakened him, drained him from his energy, but it had been a while since he had last felt so good. As if he was alive again.

"The fever's gone", he heard Hyukjae state before the warmth of his palm vanished from Donghae's face. "Another few days and you'll be completely healed."

Donghae nodded shortly, a soft grin tugging his lips upward.

"Now, we need to talk about something", Hyukjae's voice spoke again, and this time it sounded a little more serious.

Donghae's heart thumped and began to beat faster. He didn't know why, but he suddenly got scared and anxious, wondering what Hyukjae wanted to tell him. He began to slightly panic when the terrifying thought of Hyukjae throwing him out crept up into his mind. The fear was irrational, Hyukjae had told him that he wasn't alone anymore, that he would help him and take care of him, but he was so used to people hating him and being afraid of his curse that he instinctively prepared himself to be thrown out.

The other male probably felt how Donghae's body stiffened and how the boy froze, because his gentle hand quickly came to pat the cursed boy's head.

"It's nothing bad, Donghae, don't be scared", he reassured him. "It's about what we talked about yesterday, with Heechul Hyung."

Donghae instantly calmed down and released a small shuddering sigh. Then he frowned and tilted his head to the side, trying to remember what Hyukjae was talking about.

After his little eavesdropping into Hyukjae and Heechul's talk, which had resulted in Donghae hugging Hyukjae for more than an hour, the three males had sat back to the kitchen and discussed a few things. Donghae hadn't talked so much, been busy eating another ramyun, but had been listening carefully to the two other men.

"Do you remember? We talked about my job", Hyukjae then said.

"Hmm", Donghae hummed and shortly nodded. "You repair cars", he grinned, though he still wasn't so sure what a car looked like. Despite the two others' attempts of explanation, he could only imagine it as a noisy and vibrating seat in some sort of box.

"I repair cars", Hyukjae confirmed and sounded quite happy that Donghae remembered it. "I'm a mechanic, that's right. That's my job and it's how I earn money. And I also told you I need to go back to work today, because my boss will fire me if I skip too many days."

Donghae nodded again, his face flushing a bit when he recalled how he had made a fool of himself the previous day. He had never felt like this before, feeling embarrassed about himself, but since it had been the first time he had heard the word fire, he had genuinely misinterpreted it.

"Remember that it doesn't mean he's gonna burn me alive", Hyukjae chuckled and Donghae's blush deepened.

"I know", the blindfolded boy whined, earning another chuckle from Hyukjae.

"Sorry, you were just really cute yesterday when you freaked out", the latter quietly giggled, making Donghae's lower lip jut out as the younger pouted. "Sorry", he apologized again. "So, like I said, I need to go back to work today. It's 8 o'clock right now, I need to leave in half an hour. Is it still okay with you, to stay here with Heechul until I come back?" he inquired, his tone turning a little worried.

Donghae immediately nodded, even though he'd rather stay with the other the whole day. He didn't want Hyukjae to have problems because of him nor to be a burden.

"It's okay Hyukjae", he softly said and forced a smile on his face. "I'm used to be alone", he muttered and earned a little groan from the elder male. "I-I mean, I won't even be alone", he quickly added. "Heechul Hyung said he will take care of me."

"Yeah", Hyukjae grumbled. "That's what scares me..."

Donghae tilted his head as he didn't understood what the other meant. Hyukjae's hand automatically came back to his head and gently patted his hair.

"Aish, don't listen to me", he sighed. "Heechul will take care of you. I'm just worried about... you know..."

"About what?"

"I don't want him to teach you bad stuff", Hyukjae mumbled.

"Bad stuff?" Donghae inquired with genuine curiosity.

"Yeah, like... bad words and stuff", Hyukjae kept grumbling, obviously a bit uncomfortable with the topic. Donghae was about to ask more details about the meaning of 'bad words and stuff', but the bell rang at that moment and Hyukjae stood up right away. "He's already here, I'll just open the door for him. Get out of bed, okay? I prepared some breakfast for you."

"Okay", Donghae softly replied.

He felt one last pat on his head and then heard the rustle of Hyukjae's clothes as the latter walked out of the room. He cautiously pulled his legs out of the blanket, shivering when his bare feet touched the cold floor, and sat at the edge of the mattress. He carefully listened to the sounds, the only way he could understand what was going on. Hyukjae's feet softly padded along the hallway as the male made his way to the front door. Donghae heard a lock being unlocked and the sound of the door brushing against the floor of the flat.

"Finally!" Heechul' voice grumbled. "What took you so long?"

"Good morning Hyung", Hyukjae sighed. "I'm glad to see you too."

"Shut up, I'm freezing", the elder whined and the sound of shoes stomping on the floor told Donghae's that Heechul had entered the place. "Oh, breakfast! Awesome, I'm starving!"

"This is for Donghae", Hyukjae's voice snapped. "Yah! Don't eat it!"

"Where is he?"

"In the bedroom, he just woke up", Hyukjae replied. "I'll go and get him. Don't eat it!"

Donghae then heard foot steps approaching the room. He didn't move, quietly sitting on the bed, waiting for Hyukjae to enter the room. Even if his savior was nothing like his father, he was still used not to move from his confined room, not until someone came to get him and allow him to get out. So he just did what he had done his whole life. He waited for permission.

"Donghae?" Hyukjae uttered from the door. The young man approached the cursed one and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Are you hungry?"

"Yes."

"Good. Come", Hyukjae chirped and helped Donghae up on his feet, placing a hand in the boy's back to guide him out of the room and lead him to the kitchen. He made sure the younger didn't bump into anything on the way.

"Hey Donghae!", Heechul exclaimed cheerfully as the two entered the room.

The cursed boy felt himself being yanked away from Hyukjae. He flinched and released a small cry of surprise, while Hyukjae immediately began to scold his cousin, telling him to be more careful with the younger male. Heechul snorted but his hand came to ruffle Donghae's hair, silently apologizing, and the blindfolded boy could only smile happily at the gesture.

"Sit here", Heechul said as he pushed Donghae down on a wooden chair. "Hyukjae prepared breakfast for us."

"I prepared it for Donghae", the latter mumbled dejectedly, only to be ignored by his elder.

"Do you like eggs?" Heechul focused all his attention on the boy. "I'll fill your bowl, just tell me what you want."

"I can eat everything", Donghae softly replied, not wanting to remind the other that he couldn't actually choose something he couldn't see. "Oh!", he muttered as his nose picked up the smell of fried rice and kimchi. "Smells good", he grinned.

"Eat as much as you want", Hyukjae gently uttered, his warm hand squeezing Donghae's shoulder lightly. The boy heard a chair being moved, creaking on the floor, and he sensed the other male take a seat beside him.

He grinned to himself, feeling blissfully happy to be able to eat with someone again, instead of being alone in a silent room, numb and depressed. When Heechul placed his bowl, now filled with food, back on the table, Donghae inhaled deeply and his smile widened. He thanked whoever placed a spoon in his hand, guessing it was Hyukjae, and immediately