A/N: I have edited this chapter by adding some more in the end of the chapter. Hope you will enjoy reading it more. Sorry for inconvenience.

            They turned around to see Lay was leaning on the wall beside their dining table. They were about to ask how did he came in, but then they realized asking that question to a Guardian would be pointless.

            “When did you arrive?” Suho asked while gesturing his hand, asking Lay to sit with him.

            “Since the part when Sehun was planning to send away my sister,” Lay went and took his seat.

            “No- no, I didn’t mean it that way!” Sehun quickly shook his head. Lay somehow could make a scary brother-in-law. What was I thinking?

            Lay turned to Sehun, and for a moment Sehun thought he could read his mind. Then Lay turned back to the others.

            “I came here because I learnt that the Seeker has found Elyna,” Lay said. “What happened?”

            “We don’t know,” Suho replied. “When we arrived there, we saw Sehun was already holding Elyna on the road.” They turned to Sehun.

            “When I reached there, Elyna was already sitting on the floor, alone. I saw no one around,” Sehun replied.

            Lay kept silent, as if he was analyzing the whole thing. “I knew they would find Elyna in the near future, but not this fast. I didn’t expect her to use it to other people other than her family.”

            “What do you mean?” Suho asked.

            “The Seekers seeks Elyna through her power. Each time Elyna use her power, it’s like pointing out her location to them. The more power she use, the more harm she will bring to herself. And the weaker she is, and the easier the Seekers will find her.”

            “Wait,“ Sehun interrupted. “What do you mean by the more power she use, the more harm she will bring to herself? Do you mean if Elyna cure someone, it will bring harm to herself?” he asked.

            Lay turned to him, raising his eyebrows, like he was surprised he did not know the most important part of the story. Lay also noticed the fear and anxiety behind the questioning tone. He turned to the others, and they were all giving the same questioning and concern look.

            “Don’t tell me that-“he paused for a moment. “Did Elyna heal anyone of you since she stay here?” Lay asked. “Did she?” his tone turned stern and serious.

            The room turned into dead silence. No one said anything.  The boys turned to each other before all eyes fell on Sehun. Sehun’s eyes were still looking at Lay, praying that the answer for his question was a no.

            Lay sighed. “I should have told you earlier about the curse.” He said. “The healing touch is not called a curse for nothing, Sehun. Each time Elyna heal a pain, she will have to bear it for the person instead. Or to be exact, Elyna did not heal the pain; she absorbs the pain. And the more pain she absorbs, the weaker her body will be.” Lay paused, and another sigh came out from his mouth. “The curse is like a parasite. It stays in the bearer’s body and slowly erodes the body, physically and spiritually. There will be nothing waiting for them at the end of the day, except death.”

            The last sentences Sehun like a lightning. His eyes widened and he could not hear anything anymore, except the sound of his heart beating. His heart was pounding so hard it almost broke through his chest. Elyna had put herself into danger to save him. And he had caused the Seekers to sense Elyna’s whereabout. When he himself promised to protect Elyna...

            “Oppa!”

*********

            Elyna was standing in the same flower field again. She looked around, and everything was the same like what she saw before. Even the white butterfly flying around her. Elyna walked a few steps forward. Rather than focusing on the butterfly, Elyna was focusing on her way, looking forward anticipating for a certain someone. Someone she failed to recognize last time. Elyna walked until she found a man standing in the flower field, with his back facing her.

            This time, Elyna took a few steps closer to approach the man. “Excuse me-“she reached out, but in a flash, the man was already grabbing her hand. Elyna gasped. She looked up to see his face and she felt like her whole energy had left her body.

            It was L. he was smirking at her while tightening his grip on her hand. He pushed her backwards, and in the blink of an eye, the place changed. They had returned to the corner where L first caught her. But one thing was different.

            Elyna struggled to escape from the grip when she turned to her left and she saw her nightmare. Sehun and the others were chained to the wall, severely injured. Blood was dropping from their heads and their bodies. Elyna was not sure whether they were still alive or not. Elyna stopped struggling. Her face turned pale and her hands were shaking like crazy. Her legs almost gave in. Tears were running non-stop.

            “No,no,not them.. No!! NO!!!”

            Elyna gasped. She jerked awake, panting. Cold sweats were rolling from her temple down to her cheek. She looked around and took a moment to realize that it was her room. It was already dark. She got no idea what time it was. She wiped her face with both hands, catching out her breath. That nightmare was extremely frightening; her hands did not stop shaking.

            She slowly gathered her strength and got off from the bed. She was walking out of her bedroom when she heard a familiar voice.

“Elyna did not heal the pain; she absorbs the pain. And the more pain she absorbs, the weaker her body will be.”

            Elyna’s eyes widened. No, he needs to stop! Elyna fastened her step though her legs were still wobbly.

“The curse is like a parasite. It stays in the bearer’s body and slowly erodes the body, physically and spiritually. There will be nothing waiting for them at the end of the day, except death.”

            “Oppa!” Elyna yelled to stop Lay from saying more. But it was too late.

           All eyes turned to her. When her eyes met those eyes, she saw nothing but shock, concern, fear... and guilty. Especially Sehun’s. They already knew.

            “Elyna, are you okay?” Lay broke the silence.

            “Oppa! I told you not say a word about that!”

            “But you can’t hide them forever, Elyna. They need to know your condition..”

            “What for? To sympathize me? To feel guilty for me? To feel sorry that I don’t have much time left!? That in the end I’m going to die!?”

            “ELYNA!!” Lay thundered. He would not allow that word to be said by Elyna recklessly.

            Elyna jerked to a stop. She gritted her teeth. "I don't need all that," she said under her breath. "I don't need people to remind me of that in their eyes everytime they look at me."

            Lay heaved a loud sigh. “That’s it.” he continued. “I’m here to take you with me. You are not safe here anymore. You need to move.” Lay said.

            A few moments passed in silence. “I will,” Elyna finally replied. “But not with you.”

            “Elyna, stop it. This is not the time to be stubborn.” Lay said in a stern voice.

            “Who’s being stubborn here!?” Elyna replied with a higher tone. Her anger had brought out the hard feeling she had kept for the whole time. She was clenching her fist hard until her knuckle turned white, trying to find strength. “Oppa, you just came out of nowhere and handed me over to a total stranger, asking them to protect me! And now suddenly you turn up and want to take me with you! Oppa, what am i? A thing?”

            “Elyna, listen-” Lay was about to retaliate but Elyna cut in.

            “Let me finish first!”

            The room fell silent.

            “Oppa, I don’t know what is happening to my life now. I have devoted my life, my soul to protect my family, and now they all had left me. I have lived half of my life beaten by that monster, living in that hell and now I am finally free. But then suddenly some God-know-who group of army is targeting me and trying to steal whatever curse that I have.” Elyna’s lips were trembling and her voice was shaking, trying to hold back the tears. She was totally fed up with everything. "I have already sold my soul! What else do they want from me!?"

            “I’m tired of this! From the beginning, my life was already a curse!” Elyna smacked her chest a few times. The resentment in her heart is dying to come out. Tears finally made their way down her cheeks. “I’ve got nothing left. Not a soul. Not a life. Not even much time.” With those last words, Elyna left the house.

            Those last words left Lay speechless. He knew what she meant. He knew perfectly what he meant.

            “Lay,” Suho tried to calm him down.

            Lay wiped his face with both of his hand. A drop of tear, purely from a brother’s heart, finally rolled down the cheek. “It was my fault. I should have stopped her.”

A/N: Olympic badminton final round yesterday!

Although Lee Chong Wei did not win, but i'm still proud of him.

He's a Legend! Silver in medal, but Gold in our heart <3

Updated: 21/8/2016, 00.55 a.m.