Chapter 21: Something More

Woozi opened his mouth, a flint of anger sparking against brown iris’s… After a breath of silence, though, he had shrunken back. Something in his wide gaze seemed to have cooled.

“Is that what it says you have to do?”

Seungcheol froze for a brief moment, his mind lulling into a speechless state by the naïve swaying of Woozi’s tail. He should have said no. Really, any decent person would have laughed, and spewed something along the lines of ‘Sike! I’m just yankin’ ya’ chain, bro. let’s get back to business!’… Seungcheol, however, had shriveled into a pile of pure scum in the sole presence of Woozi. Instead of backing out while he had the chance, saving his skin in the long-run, he had flicked that little angel of common decency off his shoulder. “I-yes-uh, to test the reactions,” he sputtered, feeling blood rush to his head as Woozi’s eye’s shifted to the floor.

Well, he wasn’t really lying... It said it would respond to different emotions, so wasn’t it worth testing a physical reaction as well?...

Ugh, who was he kidding? He just wanted to pet it! How could he not? That thing had been swaying temptingly before him since the day he met Woozi. Long and winding like the tail of a cat, ethereally unusual. Woozi never hid it when they were alone in the house, he slinked around Seungcheol, waving it through the air like temptation. Thick black fur shining in the reflection of daylight. Seungcheol didn’t have a tail, obviously… Woozi was the only human-ish being he had ever met with one, wasn’t it natural to be curious?

He realized with a nervous swallow, that they had been drowning in silence for a long time. Woozi’s eyes glued to the floor with an air of insecurity. Seungcheol shifted where he sat, feeling a tinge of guilt. “Is it okay? I mean, we can skip it…”

“No,” He answered quickly, eyes reaching Seungcheol with an uncharacteristic crack against his voice. He coughed away his nerves, composing himself. “It’s better that we get it out of the way. I have a feeling Jeonghan’s going to chew us out for skipping , later.” The demon took a breath, turning on the couch so that his back was facing Seungcheol, forearms anchored against the armrest. He stared back over his shoulder with an expression Seungcheol couldn’t place, eyebrows knitted together anxiously. “Just… Be gentle, okay?”

Seungcheol gulped, blood rushing against his cheeks. “Of course.. Just-uh-tell me if you want me to stop, okay?”

The demon nodded, turning his head away. leaving Seungcheol’s mind to become lost in a sea of thoughts, all of which were running inappropriate at the incentive of his words. Quickly though, he began to center in on the issue at hand… Woozi’s tail, curled close to his body, recoiling away from Seungcheol. Even if Woozi had given him permission, he supposed his tail couldn’t help but show its discomfort with the whole idea.

Woozi didn’t say anything to rush him this time. His face was unreadable from here, leaving Seungcheol to make a wild guess and assume he should just get this over with. A quick little pat, and he would stop, sweeping this whole stupid idea under the rug of shame.

His hand inched forward, tentatively. A gentle brush against the fur on the tip, and the entire appendage had twitched away. Along with it, Woozi had jumped in his seat.

Seungcheol pulled his hand back in a panic. “Sorry!”

“, it’s fine.. I’m fine, just do it.” He spoke through clenched teeth, likely more embarrassed at himself for reacting, than at Seungcheol for trying.

Maybe that wasn’t a good place to start, though… He should ease into it, from the beginning. Seungcheol straightened up, leaning into Woozi so that he may reach from a less awkward angle. The couch dipped where he rested his knees, Woozi’s posture tensing against his presence.

“I’m going to start now, okay?” The demon nodded quickly, letting go a throaty hum of agreeance. He was oddly compliant today… though, he supposed he shouldn’t question that. It was good that Woozi seemed to be letting go of his stubbornness, even if it was for something like.. this.

He pressed his palm against the small of the demon’s back, just above the base of his tail. It peeked out beneath his sweater, lifting the hem of the fabric against a curve of black. Gently, his hand moved down, centering enough pressure that Woozi would be aware of every movement.

He reached it slowly, smoothing down jutting hairs along the flat of his hand in gentle motions. This time, when Seungcheol felt silk against his palm, Woozi didn’t show any signs of startle, besides a gentle twitch of his tail. He stayed silent, expression unreadable as he stared off.

The tail wasn’t as flimsy as Seungcheol had expected. He pet along it like one would with a cat, marveling in the uniqueness of it’s form. It was soft, the same texture as Woozi’s hair, though the fur laid relatively flat against it, tapered and silken. It didn’t respond in the way a cat would, though. Cat tails were lithe and graceful, swaying with a sense of purpose. They curved and flicked, but every movement was controlled.

The tail’s responses didn’t match it’s appearance, though; Jutting away from his hand upon contact, curling and coiling like a worm drowning in salt… He supposed in this scenario, his hand was the salt.

Seungcheol grasped gently against the base, running his hand down until it reached the poof of fur at the end. It became thinner as he went along, tapering into a delicate, mousy end. He applied just enough pressure that it couldn’t slink away amongst its thrashing, Utilizing his free hand to brush along the fur. Dainty, fine hair’s of ebony making up the poof. They were much softer than the rest, reminiscent of a rabbit’s tail. This could be what Jeonghan had mentioned in the list… the awn fur, or whatever. At least that should confirm that a good part of Woozi was Kasha.

Still, this was so odd. Of course, the mere fact that Woozi had a tail was odd, but honestly, he was used to it. It was the fact that he was touching it that felt unreal, and seeing Woozi sat before him, allowing this scene to unfold willingly... it wasn’t what Seungcheol had expected. When he compared it to the past, how Woozi used to curse him out and throw a fit at every little thing he did… He couldn’t help the flutter of ease he felt erupt.

Despite the unorthodox manner in which they were bonding, Seungcheol couldn’t deny that a few of the twists in his stomach were out of endearment.

Seungcheol’s combed through the fur with his fingers, peeking over at the boy curiously. The demon remained silent, facing away. He hadn’t protested, and no signs of purring, either…. Thank god for that. While it was cute, and a funny little quirk in theory… Seungcheol had been on the internet before, he wasn’t about to stoop into furry territory.

, was he considered a furry for finding it cute? Goddamnit…

He shook his head at that thought, taking in the silence surrounding him as permission to continue. Really, he nearly kept going, until upon placing his eyes back down on the tail, Seungcheol quickly realized… Woozi was trembling.

The furs on the tail were standing on end, pulling away helplessly from his grip, which had unconsciously become stronger to keep the appendage from slipping away. Seungcheol released it with wide eyes, bounding off the couch to face Woozi as quickly as he could process what these signs meant.

He reached his face hoping for anger, something normal. Woozi's eyes were squeezed shut, face contorted in discomfort.

“Hey, hey, what’s wrong? You okay?” Seungcheol angled the demon’s face in his hands, resting down on one knee to lean close.

Woozi’s eyes shot open against the contact, falling back on the couch in surprise, away from Seungcheol. His mind returned to him in a blink, wide eyes settling into something along the lines of careful repression.

“, did it hurt? You should have said something.”

“No... God, it didn’t hurt.” The demon scowled, covering his face with a sleeve. “I…”

Seungcheol sat back down on the couch carefully, as he struggled for words, leaving a chunk of distance between them for insurance. “Was it weird?” He gulped, fingers intertwining together anxiously as Woozi hid behind the paws of his sweater.

“It wasn’t…”

Seungcheol remained silent, watching incredulously.

“Okay, it was weird. Not the test, really, but my tail is-… .. I don’t…” he huffed out a sigh, throwing his hands down and staring hard at the floor. “I’m just not used to people being careful with me like that, okay? I know you wouldn’t, but…” Woozi took a couple breaths to calm himself, grasping at the end of his tail in a tight fist.

He met Seungcheol’s eyes with a clouding of disarray over soft brown iris’s.

“I can’t… I’ve never done this before, Seungcheol. For me, it’s-… It’s… Damnit, forget about it...” Woozi looked away, expression shifting to his feet in embarrassment. “Did you get what you needed?”

“What? Never mind that. What are you talking about, Woozi?”

Woozi opened his mouth, pupils shaking under the darkening of Seungcheol’s tone.

“If it wasn’t okay with you, you should have told me! Woozi, I though…” Seungcheol felt his cheeks go hot, mind hazy with a mix of embarrassment and irritation. He ran is hand’s over his face, hiding the obvious flush. “I thought you trusted me with this.”

“It’s not that I don’t, for s sake… I didn’t refuse, did I?” Woozi frowned, looking off. It wasn’t an easy thought to explain, and certainly not something he was capable of saying outright. “I do, I trust you. Even though you're a usually, I feel... I don't know, at ease?”

Seungcheol stiffened in his seat, staring down awestruck.

The demon caught his expression with a jittery up and down, embarrassed. “Quit looking at me like that, I-damn.. I don’t know why, okay? With you, everything that I’m trying to keep in comes out like vomit. I feel like in that sense, at least my body trusts you... This is just, It's way too far out of my comfort zone.”

Seungcheol frowned. “Why didn’t you just tell me to off or something, then? If you don’t say something, how would I know you couldn’t do it?”

Woozi sighed. “It’s not that I can’t. Contact is just difficult for me, especially my… my tail. I’m used to people touching my head, and normal like that. But there, I’m just not used to it yet.”

“You were shaking, Woozi,” Seungcheol uttered. “You looked petrified, for god’s sake. Is it really just a matter of getting used to it?”

Woozi fell silent for a long time. A heavy taste lingering in the air as the pace of his heart began to ring against his chest.

Seungcheol’s hand itched to ease the tension, reach forward and hold him, smothering every little flame of insecurity between them. He couldn’t, knowing how Woozi felt about it. After a breath, he settled for a comforting hand against his shoulder. “You know that I would never do anything to hurt you, right?”

Woozi grimaced. “I don’t doubt that. You’re one of the few people I’ve met I can say that about. You, Jeonghan… Everyone I meet in this place goes against my expectations. Honestly, it’s unnerving.” Woozi looked up, finally, eyeing Seungcheol’s hand for a brief moment, before meeting his eyes. “Back home, I was never treated like this, it’s taken some time for me to get accustomed to it.”

“What do you mean?”

He scoffed. “I mean, it was hell. I was a useless runt among gods, can you blame them for having frustrations? My body just wasn’t meant to handle the strength of other demon’s.”

“Are you talking about your parent?” Despite the casual tone, Woozi’s voice was unsteady. Seungcheol put two and two together quickly, mouth falling open in realization. “Did they… Did they hurt you?”

He scoffed, not missing a beat. “I always caused trouble, they only applied punishment as needed.”

“Punishment?… , Woozi, what did they do to you?”

Woozi shrunk away from Seungcheol’s hold, reverting back to a closed-off frown as his voice had reached an interrogating level of volume. He didn’t want to remember; those memories were buried in the very deepest depths of his mind. He hadn’t thought about it until he felt a hand grasp his tail, grip tightening, triggering memories of the snap of cartilage within a strangling fist. The bone of his tail manipulated, crooked, up until the moment his healing had forced it back to it’s original shape. Once it had reverted, He had forgotten… He tried to forget, at least, but his body remembered.

He gathered up his words after a moment of thought, pupils shaking. “When I did something wrong, I would be disciplined. It wasn’t any deeper than that, so can we drop it?”

Woozi was trembling. Subtly enough that if Seungcheol hadn’t been watching him so intently, he probably wouldn’t have noticed… As if he was purposefully holding it back. Seungcheol reached forward again, holding his cheeks in two hands, and angling Woozi’s face up towards him again. “Woozi, Look at yourself… Whatever you’re not telling me, it’s obviously hurting you. Keeping it inside… it’s not healthy, man.”

“But-“

“And I get it! It’s hard to say it. But if you trust me, you should be able to talk to me about these things!”

“It’s not that simple...” he muttered, eyes shifting.

“It is.” Seungcheol stressed, holding his face tighter, ensuring he wouldn’t look away. “It’s not complicated, Woozi. Your mind is just so used to it being so taboo, that it feels impossible. I know, I’ve been there. But… you told me about your parents before. When you thought I was too drunk to remember, right?… So, I know you’re capable of talking about it.. And I mean, out of everyone, aren’t I the best person to talk to about ty parents?”

Woozi fell silent, unable to muster up a responce.

“Okay, maybe my problems aren’t as big as yours… But either way, what you’re doing isn’t going to help you get anywhere, Woozi. I used to keep it all in like you, too. I thought, , nobody cares about this, right? It’s just my ty life, I shouldn’t bother my friends with it. They’d probably just tell me to get over it, pick myself up and realize there’s a greater issue out there. I used to think I was alone in this just because I was too stubborn to talk to someone about it.”

Seungcheol scoffed, thinking back. “Jeonghan basically forced me to tell him. He had to lock me in a freaking bathroom with him. And you know what? I hated him for it in the moment… So, I get it. It’s difficult. But when I finally gave in, he listened to me, he sympathized with me…” Seungcheol kept his eyes on Woozi, steadying his voice with a breath. “If it wasn’t for Jeonghan, if not for him locking me in the bathroom with him and convincing me to talk… I don’t know what would have happened to me. He basically saved my life.”

“What do you mean.. he saved your life?” The demon spoke in a hushed tone, taken aback.

Seungcheol smiled, looking a bit ashamed. “Kinda melodramatic, I know… But, I was a teenager, I thought the whole world was working together to make my life a living hell. I wasn’t thinking straight back then… Jeonghan, and my other friends, they pulled me back and gave me a reason to think differently… It’s not like they actually fixed my problems or anything, but they gave me a reason to quit pretending I was okay.” Seungcheol smiled, running the pad of his thumb along Woozi’s cheek in a comforting motion, soft and warm. The demon didn’t react to the gesture, he simply stared up, eyes round. “So, don’t pretend it’s nothing, Woozi. I don’t wanna have to lock you in our bathroom.” He chuckled, an awkward attempt to lighten up the seriousness of the topic.

Woozi didn’t respond right away, though, staring in silent contemplation, giving Seungcheol time to realize exactly what was happening. His hands, pressed tenderly against soft, pink cheeks. Their knees touching, the breath between them audible; Seungcheol had quickly became aware of all of these things. As his palms began to sweat, he could only hope Woozi didn’t notice, too.

The demon pulled Seungcheol’s hands off of him by the wrists, sitting back on the couch and staring down, eyes shadowed by strands of pink.

After a moment of silence, he huffed. “…I’m weird about my tail, because it’s the most venerable part of me.” He pulled at the hem of his sweater anxiously as he spoke, just above a whisper. “When I tried to run away, that was the easiest thing to grab me by.”

Seungcheol watched the trembling of his shoulders with a worried gaze, Stomach twisting as Woozi raised his head.

“I’m a demon… I shouldn’t be affected by like this. I don’t want to be this way, but this is who I am; A ing coward… I have no right to complain, anyways. It’s my fault this happens, Seungcheol. It’s because of me that they’re frustrated. It’s because of my stupid, weak body, and my dumb curiosity, that they needed to do it in the first place..”

“No, no that’s not right, Woozi…”

He shrugged. “It’s the truth… Isn’t that what you wanted?”

“Yeah, but Woozi, you’re not-“

“-I am. I’m not looking for sympathy, okay? You and I are similar in a lot of ways, but we’re not the same. I don’t blame my parents for hating me… Cause honestly, I do too. But you? People like you… , even I like you.”

"That's no-" Seungcheol stopped, voice breaking mid-responce as Woozi sighed into the palm of his hand. He was silent for a moment, puzzling over what he’d just heard. “You like me?”

Woozi smacked him, scowling. “ you, would you be serious? … Of course I do. Would I be telling you this if I didn’t?”

Seungcheol rubbed at his arm, heart thumping. Maybe now wasn’t the time to be thinking about this. But really, when was it ever? He gathered up his nerves with a deep breath. “I… I like you, Woozi.”

He scoffed. “I know that you do. You never leave me the alone.”

“What? No, Woozi. I really like you. Everything about you… The fact that you curse, and you cause trouble, honestly? It's frustrating for me. But, Woozi, I like that about you! That’s just a part of who you are, you’re flawed.” Seungcheol grabbed him by the shoulders, yanking him back to a facing position.

“H-hey -“

“-You’re not perfect, Woozi, not by any means. You’re ed, and you don’t fit in. But guess what? Neither do I...That’s normal. Everybody’s got flaws, you just fail to see that there’s so much more to you than that.”

Woozi glared up with an incredulous gaze, building up a list of defiance in his gaze.

Before he could open his mouth, Seungcheol shushed him with the palm of his hand. “You could never see what I see… so, I get it. And, maybe you’re not a great demon, but so what? Honestly, you’re the first person I’ve ever met who’s made me want to work this hard at something, and that’s not an easy thing to do. This whole thing with the tests? it’s not just because you saved my life. I’m not doing all this bull because I feel like I have to…”

Seungcheol removed his hand from Woozi’s mouth, filling the space between them by pulling Woozi in by the shoulders instead, wrapping his arms around him tightly. The demon stiffened in his hold, finding himself at a loss of words.

“It’s because I… I care about you. When I look at you, I don’t see you the way you see yourself. I think you’re special… I think.. we have something special… I think I’m- I’m in…”

Seungcheol’s tongue twisted, the words he so desperately wished to say stuck at the back of his throat like glue. His heart was beating, strongly enough that he could swear Woozi would be able to feel it against his own chest. Why couldn’t he just say it? Usually, he could never keep his damn mouth shut… Why was it with something like this, that his mind became unsure?

It was such a simple sentence, three words. Whether or not Woozi accepted him didn’t matter… He couldn’t keep it inside, Woozi deserved to know why Seungcheol cared so much.

He was in love with him, for god’s sake.

“Me too…”

Seungcheol pulled away in surprise, examining the demon’s expression with darting eyes. “W-what?”

He stared down at Woozi's face, searching for doubt. His expression was shy. In a way, almost bashful. Eyes shifting unsurely, ears tinted red.

Woozi sighed, a miniscule hint of a smile cracking behind his pout. “I feel the same way…”

“You... you do?”

‘Yeah…I-” He breathed, staring up at Seungcheol, who’s mind was racing irrationally. “You are special… Different from other people, that’s for sure. I think you’re a good friend.. But, it’s more than that. Being with you, it’s… kind of what I’ve always imagined having a brother would be like..”

“A… brother?”

Woozi nodded, smiling faintly.

Was he just…. Bro-zoned? “Ah-uh, Yeah, brothers.” Seungcheol let out a jittery laugh, feeling his face burn. Oh , how much more wrong could he have been? He almost ing said that, was he an idiot?

Oblivious to the devastation, Woozi’s slight, embarrassed smile still held. God, how could Seungcheol say no to that?He sighed, attempting to shove aside his delusional dreams by making light of the situation. “If we’re brother’s, shouldn’t you be calling me Hyung now?”

“What? No, you.”

Figures… “Oh, come on… It’s basic etiquette!” He pouted.

Woozi scoffed. “I don’t ever see Jeonghan using honorifics with you, why should I?”

“That’s different. Jeonghan is, like… two months younger than me. You're a whole year, so please?”

“No.”

Seungcheol pressed his hands together, playfully pleading. “Just once?”

He looked away for a moment, staring at the floor in defiance. Seungcheol had been partially joking, knowing well that Woozi wasn’t the type to give in to such trivial requests.

“Seungcheol… hyung.”

Holy . “Oh my god… Why is that so satisfying to hear?”

Woozi leaned back on the couch, crossing his arms defiantly. “Don’t get used to it. That was a one time thing.”

“What? But, it sounds so right coming from you…”

Woozi kicked him lightly from where he was lying. “Forget it. Can we just finish these stupid tests? I’m-“

Woozi stopped, interrupted by an eruption of growling from the pit of his stomach.

“-getting hungry…”

Seungcheol smirked, ruffling his hair as he stepped up from the couch. “How about I order some pizza, first?”

~

The food came in little time at all, devoured in silence, as Seungcheol seemed to be too busy chewing to make conversation.

Jihoon peaked over him, feeling a strange sensation spark as he watched the human choke back pizza at record speed, staring up at the television show they had flipped on upon a whim.

He couldn’t place this feeling on any one emotion. But, honestly? These days, he had trouble giving anything in his life a proper place.... There had been that lingering question in the air among them through everything, recently. Why did he say like this? Why did he act this way? Unlike Seungcheol, Jihoon was never really sure.

When Seungcheol looked at him, he felt comfort. When they talked, he would open up despite his best efforts to remain closed… When He touched him, the walls he’d built began crumbling to the floor. Jihoon couldn’t say this about anyone else. Not about Jeonghan... He’d always had the feeling Jeonghan was sitting on a different level than him entirely, as if no matter how close they were, they remained on different wavelengths. His parents? Of course not. Seokmin?... Well, that guy was just an anomaly.

Seungcheol was different. Maybe this was what the bonding spell did, perhaps it increased trust in them for the sake of servitude. But, maybe it wasn’t just that.

And for a while, Jihoon couldn’t even begin to place why it was this way between them. Not enemies, not acquaintances, not friends… but, something more. Something Jihoon had never had, not once in his life, so how could he put a label on it?

Maybe calling Seungcheol his brother wasn’t accurate. Biologically, it was impossible, and morally, also very wrong. But, it somehow felt right to say.

It was the closest title he could think of, to place the feeling attached to it. Something like home, in a way…

Not that he was ever going to tell Seungcheol that.

Woozi scarfed back his final slice of pizza, reclining in his chair with a yawn as he stared at the screen above him.

“getting tired?” Seungcheol questioned.

“I’m fine. Shouldn’t we continue the tests?” Woozi rubbed at his eyes, watching with a disinterested gaze as the humans on the screen began a heated talk, arguing about something trivial to the plot.

“It’s getting late, we could just finish it tomorrow. Unless, You really want to keep going.”

He shrugged. “What’s next on the list?”

Seungcheol pulled out his phone, scrolling through with a looming sensation of nervousness.

Methods for proving Incubus roots:

Incubus legends are pretty vague do to such little reliable scientific research being done on them during the age of black magic. Most is based on rumors, leaving figuring it out, pretty much up to the imagination.

Legend one states that Incubus can only appear in dirty dreams. But, that may be too difficult to test.

Other legends say they sleep with humans in order to bear half demon-half human children. Again, testing this is morally questionable.

The general consensus, however, remains to be that Incubus seduce humans.

So, have Woozi attempt to seduce you. If he is an incubus, something like this would likely come natural to him.

Seungcheol ran a hand down his face in exasperation. Any other time or day, he probably would have been elated at the prospect of being ‘seduced’ by Woozi… But, definitely not today.

“On second thought, let’s finish this tomorrow… Jeonghan will be here to help us by then.” He grumbled, shoving that cursed phone back into his pocket.

Woozi rolled onto his side lazily, yawning. “Sure. Will you go to sleep, then?”

Seungcheol got up, looking away. “I’m going to do some homework downstairs… Have a good sleep.”

“Uh, okay...” He watched Seungcheol leave, eyes heavy lidded with exhaustion as the human disappeared behind the basement door.

Why did he get the feeling that Seungcheol wasn’t really going to do homework down there?

He rolled over into a sitting position, scratching at his head curiously. Was it something on the list that frustrated him? Must have been another stupid test. Jihoon supposed he didn’t blame Seungcheol for needing a break. It was a little too much for the both of them. As long as he’d been sitting down it was fine, but he really was feeling the toll of his weakness. It was barely evening, and he was about ready to pass out.

Jihoon pulled himself off the couch after a moment of thought, arms aching under the pressure.

The house was quiet. At least, Seungcheol probably wasn’t doing anything dangerous down there. Maybe he really did have homework?

Nah, ing unlikely.

Jihoon stood in the middle of the bedroom in deliberation. He could go to sleep dirty, or he could suffer through a bath, and pray his exhaustion wouldn't end up being the death of him. Death by drowning with pretty high up on his list of 'worst ways to bite it.'

He could just take a bath in the morning… Might as well not risk it. Woozi stepped towards the bed lazily, lifting the blanket.

But, as he leaned in, his breath hitched abruptly.

Jihoon clutched at his heart with his hands, digging his fingernails into the fabric of his sweater painfully, clawing at his chest in desperation.

He couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t ing breathe. Every attempt at drawing in air reminiscent of choking on plastic. His lungs wouldn’t stretch, the air too thick to flow through his body. Too heavy, too painful.

After a moment of silent gasping, Jihoon fell forward onto the bed, face down against the mattress.

He tried to scream, but there was no air left to release. His lungs hallow, concaving within his chest. His body heaved, like a frightened rabbit, uselessly beating against nothinness.

What the … was happening…

Consciousness left him, slowly enough that Jihoon felt his body seething.

He saw nothing, his vision a blurring obscurity… The sound of his heart deafening, ever-increasing.

Slowly, his mind left him as well.

Lethargically lulling, in-between awareness and slumber. A hand against him, rolling him over.

Smiling down at him, until everything cut to black.