[klɒθ]

Woven or felted fabric made from wool, cotton, or a similar fiber

The second skin. The shelter. The filter. The surface.

The army of fibers which spread like veins; forced into uniform structure and used for another's purposes.

All he could see, all he could feel, was Eunhyuk. His hands flung around the expanse of that emerald green cape; grabbing him around the waist and clinging on as tightly as he could as he buried his head into the other's chest. Donghae could feel the blonde freeze for a moment and panicked on whether he had done the right thing in confronting him so boldly. Did their earlier encounter not mean as much to Eunhyuk as it had for Donghae?

He pulled away slightly, face flushed with embarrassment and a sinking feeling in his chest when he felt arms curling around him and hugging him back and a cheek pressed against his own. Vanilla and hyacinths surrounded him and there was no way to describe Donghae's flustered state nor his confusion as to how to respond other than hug the other tighter.

Eunhyuk withdrew first and Donghae lowered his head warily, waiting for lightning to strike him for having attacked the blonde with his flailing limbs and butting head, but peeked up at the faintest hint of a chuckle.

"You haven't changed at all." Eunhyuk teased, lifting Donghae's chin up to face him with a finger that burned like ice, "Always with the sudden hugging and thinking about consequences later. What if you'd mistaken someone else to be me?"

"I would never!" The brunette cried in outrage, honey brown hair fluttering once again over his face, "I knew it was you from the moment I saw you. I would never mistake somebody else for you."

"You never recognise me when you see me." The blonde corrected him, amused as he tucked the stray strands behind the latter's ear, "You're not supposed to, although I have to admit that I was rather disappointed that you didn't immediately realise who I was this time. The key hasn't turned just yet. He knew this was going to happen. It's been seventeen years and I'm being a little selfish right now."

Donghae could feel his heart pounding against his skin; almost threatening to burst out and his breaths were coming quick through it was probably attributed to his having frantically run after Eunhyuk. He could never have realised. Could never have guessed what these signs meant.

A cool hand was placed over his left rib and the brunette jerked back; heart jumping rapidly against the site of contact. Eunhyuk raised a brow and his eyes shifted to meet Donghae's. "A warning." he whispered softly and his lip curled in amusement though his brows drew together into an expression that resembled hopeless resignation. "Your body knows what I am even if your mind doesn't."

"What are you?" Donghae asked breathlessly.

"Let me be a little more selfish." He released Donghae and offered his elbow in a move which seemed familiar to the brunette though he couldn't quite place his finger on where he had seen this before. "Just a little longer before you open your eyes once again."

Donghae frowned as he weighed Eunhyuk's words in his mind. "My eyes… Do you mean my inner eyes?"

"Oh, very good." The blonde seemed pleased that he had begun connecting the dots. "I cannot tell you everything. He won't let me, but I hope you'll find out soon." He threw his cape over Donghae's shoulder as the brunette curled his hand around his elbow and his tone suddenly dropped; eyes piercing with a stare intense enough to burn. "It'll hurt less if you realise now than later."

Donghae opened his mouth to tell Eunhyuk that he's hardly close to understanding and to ask exactly who it was that wouldn't let him say anything but the words left him as the port, the rivers and cobbled paths and bustling stores and people melted away into an abyss of darkness around them. He felt the ground fall away from him, yet he did not drop as he still stood suspended in the air; clutching tightly to Eunhyuk's arm.

He glanced to his side and was surprised to find that he could still see the blonde despite having no source of light around them. The appeared to glow with a slightly crimson haze and Eunhyuk stared straight ahead in concentration; cape still drawn tightly around them.

It lasted for a fraction of a second; the air constricting around them and the pressure rising until even breathing seemed impossible before the darkness gave way to dancing lights and the perfume of crushed honeysuckle and lavender filled Donghae's senses; slightly drowning out that familiar scent of vanilla and hyacinths. The ground became solid beneath their boots and Donghae released Eunhyuk's arm and shielded his eyes from the sudden burst of light.

A hand gently covered his own and pulled his hand from his face, allowing his eyes to adjust to the shadow of his room shifting into sight; the inverted glass clock face shimmering in a million sparkling colours as it shattered the sunlight streaming through. Donghae glanced up to see Eunhyuk's eyes gazing downcast at his.

"Eunhyuk?"

"Yes." A whisper.

He swallowed loudly and turned away, unable to continue meeting the blonde's eyes. Why did he feel like he's known Eunhyuk for such a long time? It's only been a day since they've met in that meadow, yet he feel as though he'd known him all his life. He knew what he felt like and how his voice sounded. He knew even before they had met and it was as though their actual meeting was just an affirmation of what he had previously known.

"Don't think too hard about it." Eunhyuk advised, dropping his hold from Donghae's hand and moving away to inspect the various things scattered about the room and on his work bench. "You'll understand better if you just let it go for now. It will come. Now is just not the time."

"But," Donghae followed him as he paused to hold up a pair of miniature pliers in the light as though he had never seen such a thing before and perhaps he hadn't. He knew nothing about Eunhyuk, Donghae realised. He knew everything and nothing about the man before him. Where he had come from, where his parents were, whether he had any siblings, how he had come to be so perfect in Donghae's eyes and what he was, exactly, for though Donghae couldn't quite place his finger on the feeling, there was a hint of doubt in his mind and senses that Eunhyuk wasn't human. Or at least, not completely so. "I don't know anything about you. And you know so much about me. Why can't I-"

"You do." Eunhyuk's blinding smile seemed to wipe Donghae's mind clean of thoughts for a moment and the blonde leaned closer to playfully ruffle his hair; chuckling at the dazed expression on the latter's face. "You know so much about me. I've shared all my secrets and thoughts to you. All but one. For seventeen years, you've been the recipient of an outpouring of my emotions."

"Then why can't I remember?" Donghae cried out in frustration. "I want to know. I want to know who you are!" He wanted to know what kind of food Eunhyuk liked. What did his parents look like? Did his tall height come from his father? Did his gummy smile come from his mother? Why did he start talking to Donghae in the first place? What was he doing in Jiyong's cupboard? Why did he feel like such an intimate part of Donghae, even after such a short time?

"When you open your eyes, you forget." Eunhyuk said seriously, gently putting down the pliers and fixing his gaze on Donghae's. He blinked and seemed a little startled at the tears welling up in the brunette's eyes and drew closer to cradle his face in his hands and wipe his tears away with his thumbs. "Oh, you silly little thing." He murmured softly, "You've always been a bawler, haven't you? I still remember…"

"But I don't." Donghae complained, an urge to stamp his foot coming over him, yet he rejected the feeling as being too childish. "I don't remember and I want to. If I lose everything when I open my eyes, then I don't want to! I'd rather stay here. It's no different to when they're open other than the fact that you're here and I'll be there and I'll forget everything."

"You don't know what you're talking about. I did say that I still had one more secret kept from you. If I tell you this, instead of greeting me with smiles and hugs every time we meet again, you'll be cowering in fear with no idea why." Eunhyuk's cheek twitched and he gave Donghae a grim smile. "It's a nightmare you don't want to live out forever. Trust me."

"Well, what if I want to?" Donghae insisted stubbornly. "What if I said that I wanted to live it out forever?"

"Oh, you will." He laughed easily though his eyes grew harder with each second. "When it's too late, you'll finally get your wish. It’s coming close but I have to wait a little longer before I can have you. No sooner, though. I'm already being selfish by keeping you here this long. You were meant to leave since our encounter in the meadow."

Donghae twisted away and approached the glow of the clock face; his fingers tentatively touching the cool glass and peering down at the miniscule bustle of people; no doubt there was a cacophony of sound beneath him. A soft click was heard behind him and Donghae turned in a daze to see Eunhyuk slowly shutting the cupboard door with eyes still trained on him; cutting off that intoxicating fragrance until it was only a memory in h