Chapter Four.

Yesung drove Kyuhee back to their place. He parked the car just outside the building. He noticed the Leeteuk’s car was already parked, it was good that he was home Yesung thought as he accompanied her up to the condo where she and Leeteuk lived.

He rang the doorbell and Leeteuk opened the door. He greeted his hyung warmly as they went inside. Kyuhee remained quiet and detached since they left the shop. She silently hugged and kissed her father’s cheek before excusing herself to go to her room.

Leeteuk looked at her worriedly, not used to seeing her like that. He turned to Yesung to ask what had happened.

Yesung sighed as he told Leeteuk what had happened back at the coffee shop and what they’d talked about. Leeteuk ran hand through his hair in frustration, he didn’t know what to do since this was the first time Kyuhee showed any type of rebellion towards him and his decisions. He couldn’t tell her the truth. Not yet.

It wasn’t time for that yet or so he thought.

.ooO*Ooo.

Kyuhee threw her bag down at her bed, she went to the side of her room and rummaged through her closet to change her clothes. After changing and throwing her clothes at the hamper Kyuhee threw herself at her bed. She grabbed her bag and took out her phone from inside the bag. Unlocking her phone, Kyuhee scrolled down on her list of contacts until she came across the name she was looking for.

Jung Joonyoung.

Without a second thought, she dialled the number. It rang for a few times before she heard the familiar deep baritone of his voice.

“Yeoboseoyo?”

“Oppa, it’s me.” Kyuhee said quietly, her voice cracking with her emotions.

“Kyuhee? Is everything okay? You sound upset.” He asked, concern laced in his voice.

“Mhmm.  It’s nothing, I’m just kind of feeling down right now…” She said to him, she didn’t want him to worry too much about her.

“Are you busy now?” She asked after a moment of silence.

“It’s okay. I’m free right now. Why’d you ask?”

“Can you…” She trailed off, feeling too embarrassed to ask what she wanted.

“Sing for you? Of course, what do you want to hear?” It was quite endearing that she’d still feel embarrassed to ask him to sing for her.

“The new one, please oppa.” She requested from him over the phone as she hugged her pillow close to her chest.

“Alright. Hold on for a minute, I’ll just get my guitar.” She heard him shuffling around in the background and after a minute he returned. The calming sound of him strumming his guitar soothed her, his deep and melodious voice filtered through her phone. She listened quietly and felt her heavy heart lighten.

She remembered the first time she’d met him. It was at the showcase of her Uncles: Henry, Donghae, Eunhyuk and Kyuhyun’s new performing arts school. She remembered seeing him standing awkwardly at the corner of the room looking uncomfortable amidst the sea of people. When the performances began he went up the stage and she was amazed to see him perform as sincerely as he did then. His piece was unorthodox and different from the others who’d gone before him but it was very enjoyable. Her uncle Henry had introduced him to her, proudly boasting how talented he was while Joonyoung stood blushing awkwardly. He was nice and humble so Kyuhee found it easy to talk with him and Kyuhee found herself admiring him.

Yes, she likes him.

But the question was…

Did he like her too?

She was afraid of finding out.

She was afraid of changing the dynamics of their friendship.

What if he did like her but then things wouldn’t work out for them, what then?

What if he had someone else that he liked and was only acting sweet towards her because he saw her as a good friend?

There were so many questions and doubts and she felt afraid of getting hurt. Even admitting to herself that she liked him took a really long while, she’d tried waving off her feelings but… there was no helping it.

She didn’t want to dwell on those thoughts anymore because she had other things to worry about and besides, it’s not as if she’d even be allowed to date anyone. Her dad and her uncles would never allow it. When she was still young she could remember all of them telling her she shouldn’t date until she was 30. Her uncle Heechul was especially stern on that matter.

She could still recall the way he looked when he gave her that rule. It was during one of those times that he babysat her. They’d been seating on the couch of the living room, watching a nice little anime about a student council president who worked part time in a maid café. Kyuhee was amazed at how cool Usui was and casually said so to her uncle.

“Neh Heechul-appa, Usui is really cool.” Little 6 yr. old Kyuhee said nonchalantly at Heechul who sat beside her. Heechul who’d been in the middle of texting his manager regarding his upcoming drama paused. It took him a few minutes before he could process what she’d just said. Thousands of thoughts filtered through his mind.

She said that that ANIME GUY was COOL!

She said that that GUY was COOL!

She said that another guy who wasn’t her appa or any of them was cool!

That was not acceptable! His sweet little Kyuhee wasn’t allowed to think boys were cool yet! It didn’t matter if it was just some fictional anime character! She’d found him cool and that didn’t sit well with him at all! Heechul abruptly snatched the remote control from the side table and switched of the television.

“Heechul-appa! I was watching!”

“Nope. I think that that’s enough T.V. for today! Do you want snacks, why don’t we bake some cookies?” Heechul said as he stood from the couch and proceeded to their Kitchen. At the mention of cookies, Kyuhee was distracted from the fact that her uncle had just suddenly turned off the show she was watching and followed after him. They spent the rest of the day baking cookies and coloring on her activity books, Heechul didn’t dare turn on the T.V. again and simply did his best to distract Kyuhee with all the activites he could think of just so they wouldn’t have any reason to turn on the T.V. for anything.

Kyuhee was silently coloring the drawing on her book when Heechul spoke.

“Kyuhee-ah, do you like boys now?”

Kyuhee’s brows furrowed thoughtfully and shook her head at him.

“Then why’d you say that the Usui guy was cool?” Heechul asked her. She turned to him and smiled.

“That’s ‘coz he is! He’s really good with everything!”

“But saying guys are cool means that you like them? Do you like him?”

“Like?” Kyuhee said confusedly, titling her head to the side rather cutely.

“Yeah. Like, like?” Kyuhee shrugged her shoulders and turned back to her drawing. Seriously, she didn’t get her Heechul-appa sometimes.

“So that means no?” Heechul pressed.

“I don’t think I’m old enough to like, like someone Heechul-appa.” She stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Inwardly, Heechul rejoiced! He didn’t have to worry about that sort of thing until later. Much, much later.

“Good. You have to remember Kyuhee-ah, you’re not allowed to date until you’re 30! Okay?” Heechul said to her while he patted her head approvingly.

“Okay.” Kyuhee nodded and smiled towards her uncle and went back to coloring.

The memories of her childhood was nice. She was happy and carefree back then. Now, she was growing up and facing the fact that life was never going to be as easy and carefree as it had been. There were so many things that she had to think about. Her schoolwork, her future, her friends, and the many mysteries that surrounded her entire identity.

Who was her mother?                                    

Why did everyone in her extended family treat her as if she was as fragile as glass?

Why couldn’t they let her do things that normal teens her age did.

 She was lost reminiscing about the past that she was caught off guard when Joonyoung called out to her.

“Kyuhee?” Joonyoung’s voice snapped her back from her thoughts.

“Oh, oppa. Sorry, I got spaced out.” Joonyoung chuckled, it was so like her to get lost in thought.

“It’s okay. So, you feeling better now?” Kyuhee smiled, feeling her heart race when she heard his concern.

“Yeah. Thanks so much oppa!” She said, her tone bright and happy. She really did feel much better now.

The two of them talked and laughed about the things that were happening in their life. Sharing various stories about their daily adventures but Kyuhee still didn’t tell him about the reason she was upset and that was fine for him. He knew that she’d tell him about it when she could. He never pushed her to do so. That was how they were, offering each other comfort without prying.

Perhaps an hour or two had gone by when Kyuhee heard a knock on her door. Looking over at the clock on her bedside table she found that it was already 8:30. Her dad was calling her for dinner. She said goodbye to Joonyoung and went out her room.

Her dad and her uncle Yesung were already sitting at the table. Kyuhee smiled slightly at them which was good since that meant that she was feeling better. She took her seat and ate. Dinner was a nice affair. She didn’t bring up the topic about her upcoming field trip, Leeteuk and Yesung shared stories about their day while she listened intently. After dinner, when everything was cleared out Leeteuk called her into the living room.

“Do you need something appa?” Kyuhee asked as she entered their living room. She found them sitting on the couch. Leeteuk motioned for her to take her seat on the arm chair across them. Once Kyuhee took her seat Leeteuk sighed.

“Your uncle told me about what happened…” Leeteuk began, Kyuhee felt nervous now.

“I know, that your uncles and I seem too over protective sometimes but you know that we’re only looking out for you right?” Kyuhee nodded but said nothing.

Leeteuk sighed again, he was probably going to regret this but maybe it was time to let her experience the world on her own. The trip was only going to be for three days and two nights, she’d be back on Saturday.

“Your uncle tells me that this trip means so much to you. I know that it’s your last chance to do something fun with your friends and school mates so… I’ll let you go.” Leeteuk said, an uncomfortable feeling settling on the pit of his stomach once he said those words.

Kyuhee couldn’t believe her ears. A smile broke out on her face as she practically flew out of her seat and hugged her dad. She beamed brightly at him, for the first time in her life she was being allowed to do something on her own.

Leeteuk returned her hug just as fiercely, his little girl was growing up. Just the thought of it was enough to bring tears to his eyes. It seemed as if only yesterday she was just a baby, now she was nineteen and on her way on becoming an independent young woman. Soon she’ll be off to college and then work and then… she’ll find someone to love and share her life with.

Kyuhee also hugged Yesung after hugging her dad, she was so excited.

“I’m allowing you to go on the trip but there are three conditions, Okay?” Kyuhee nodded, she didn’t care if there were conditions, what was important was the fact that she was allowed to go.

“The first condition is that you’ll have to tell me where you are and when you get to the hotel. I wan’t you to frequently text me about your whereabouts okay?” Kyuhee said yes, that was fine with her.

“The next condition is that you’ll always have someone with you wherever you go.” Kyuhee nodded once more.

“The third and most important condition of all is that you won’t ever venture off into the forests or wilderness.” Kyuhee was puzzled, why would she even do such a thing? She wanted to ask her dad why but she stopped herself. She didn’t want to end up making him take back his permission.

Once she agreed to all of his conditions, Kyuhee went back to her room to get the slip. She handed it over to him and he signed it. Kyuhee excused herself and headed back to her room, she contemplated on telling her friends about the news but decided to tell them about it tomorrow in school. She stayed up until she finished doing her homework, her uncle Yesung had already left thirty minutes after she went to her room. She knew since he’d dropped by to say farewell to her, before saying goodbye Kyuhee apologized for her behaviour that afternoon.

Laying her head down on her plush pillow, Kyuhee closed her eyes and let sleep take over.

She dreamt.

.ooO*Ooo.

The light breeze caressed her skin, opening her eyes, she found herself in sitting under the shade of a huge gold tree. Looking up, she saw its flowers were blossoming right before her eyes. She was captivated by its sheer beauty.

“It’s beautiful right? It means that it will bear fruits soon.” A voice said behind her. Kyuhee whipped around to find the familiar face of her imaginary friend.

 “Kai.” He smiled at her as he took a seat beside her.

“You haven’t been here for quite some time now. It felt lonely.” He said quietly as he stared ahead, not even looking at her.

“I’m not supposed to have these kinds of dreams anymore.” Kyuhee said to herself under her breath.

“Why not?” He asked as he turned his head to look at her with a frown on his face.

“This isn’t real. You’re not real. You’re just a figment of my imagination.” She said as she stared at him.

His brows furrowed in displeasure.

“Of course I’m real. Who ever said that I wasn’t?” He said as he reached out to caress her cheek. She turned away from him.

“Don’t.” She said, moving away from him.

“Why not?” He found her actions hurtful. He left her alone for too long, she wasn’t the same as she was before. It was that damned woman’s fault! She prevented him from being able to visit Kyuhee in her dreams, the wards she’d cast were much too powerful. Even now, he was straining his energy to sustain himself in this dream.

“I’m real, Kyuhee. You know that.” He insisted almost pleadingly at her. Reaching out to her once again, this time he tried to wrap his arms around her but she broke away forcefully from him.

“No you’re not and even if you were, I don’t want anything to do with you.” Kyuhee said coldly to him. Her heart was beating wildly against her chest, she didn’t want this dream anymore.

“Kyuhee, please! You know I never wanted to leave you!” He cried out to her desperately.

“No! You’re a liar Kai! You left me even when you said you never would! I hate you!” Kyuhee screamed at him, she felt pressure build from her hands as she pushed him away from her. She was surprised to see that he was somehow flung a few meters from her. When he tried to get up, she felt herself being pulled away.

The dream fell away.

With a gasp, she woke up. Her heart was still beating hard against her chest. Adrenaline rushed through her veins. She sat up and puller her knees to her chest as she wrapped her arms around them. She let out a dry sob and tried to calm herself down.

It’s been years since she’d had a dream that included him.

She was afraid.

Kai was not just some imaginary being her mind conjured up.

He was her first real friend.

And her first real heartbreak.

She’d started dreaming of him when she was seven. That open field, was where they first met. He was impeccably nice to her and it was wonderful. But then she began to rely too much on him, she forgot to make real actual friends with the kids around her age. That was the first time she’d experienced the cruelty of children.

Everyone began to ostracize her, calling her weird and many other names. She was actually traumatized and when she suddenly couldn’t dream of him anymore, she became very upset to the point Leeteuk had to take her to see professionals. She had to confront the reality that her first and only friend was in fact not real.

In the world of the Fae’s Kai too had woken up. His mood dark and violent, he secluded himself in an empty training room and proceeded to destroy everything in his path. He’d worked so hard to build up the strength he’d used to visit her in her dreams. It wasn’t fair that all his hard work had gone to waste. Too much time had passed and it was all that woman’s fault!

None of his brothers’ had ever had the advantage he had. His power of teleportation wasn’t as awe inspiring as his brothers’ but he was the one who met her first. None of them knew of what he’d done. The ability to travel through all planes and space also allowed him the ability to travel to dreams. That was where he first realized that he could meet her and he did. For a long period of time, while his brothers were cooking up ways to take her back to their world, he was blissfully enjoying his time with her but then the connection was severed. He could still travel to the dreams of others but somehow he could no longer do so into her dreams.

 When Suho was given the chance to go into the human world, he was beyond envious and then Xuimin was allowed as well! He wanted it to be him! To see her and to convince her that he was real. To apologize for leaving her alone when she desperately needed him. Now, it seemed as if it was too late!

Kai slumped against the wall of the destroyed room. His shoulders shook with unbridled rage and grief. Tears glistened in his eyes but he refused to allow them to fall as he stared down on the floor. He felt someone’s hand on his shoulders, looking up he found Kyungsoo looking concerned with him.

“Kai. What’s gotten into you?”

“Nothing.” He bit out. His tone was cold and you could still hear the anger in it.

 “Never mind. Come on, we’re having a meeting.” Kyungsoo sighed, he wasn’t going to get anywhere with him today.

“Go on. I don’t want to go to any stupid meeting today.” Kai said as he shook off Kyungsoo’s hand on her shoulder.

“Oh? But it’s important.” Kyungsoo said teasingly.

“I don’t care.” Kai replied, he really wasn’t in the mood for this and began to walk away from his brother.

“Really? You wouldn’t care even if it was about our bride?” Kyungsoo pressed on which finally caught his attention.

“What?!” Kai stopped and whirled around to face his brother.

“Glad, I have your attention now. The meeting we’re being summoned for is concerned with the retrieval of our bride.”

“I don’t want to be involved in another failure, hyung. We can’t take her here unless she comes into our territory first.” Kai scoffed, crossing his arms.

“I know. But it seems that the chance for that has now come.” Kyungsoo said and headed out the door.

“How?” Kai said, tugging on Kyungsoo’s sleeve as he caught up to him.

“Beats me, we’ll find out when we get there.” Kyungsoo said continuing to walk through the halls of their home.

.ooO*Ooo.

A/N:

Hi guys! sorry for not updating for a few days.

I wasn't feeling well with alot of things and it prevented me from writing.

I hope you guys like this chaper. 

I introduced Jung Joonyoung. He's really cool!! 

He looks like Chanyeol and Tao combined! 

Haha!!  XD.

Thank you again for Subscribing and Commenting!!! Those things always pulls me through the rough patch.

Anyways, just one more chapter to go before she gets taken back!!!