The glass blurred the area outside, so that only the silhouettes of Seungcheol and that bastard were visible. He knocked a tentative fist against it, watching as ripples of energy pulsed out from the spot where his skin made contact.

It seemed to be a barrier… Which was a smart move, considering the fact that they were pitting demons in the basement of a town-house. It was probably best that they didn’t arouse the attention of the entire neighborhood with their antics.

He looked at Ba, who stood staring at him with the same dead eyes he’d held since he appeared.

“Are you a descendant of lord Ba?” He asked, steadying the shake in his voice. Although he had started this with resolve, he couldn’t himself from trembling… If his intuition was correct, Ba’s power was nothing to laugh at.

He said nothing… Which was to be expected.

Jihoon breathed, preparing himself. It couldn’t be that bad, right? Stupid-head said he wanted him, so he wouldn’t allow Ba to kill him here. He just needed to endure the pain until his powers reared their head… That is, if his idea works at all.

“Well? Are we going to fight or-“

Jihoon’s voice caught, stepping back as Ba began to transform. His head trembled violently, pulling apart four ways, splitting partway up the neck, skin molding and forming into that of his original form. His stature shot up a good foot, towering over Jihoon intimidatingly.

He stepped forward slow, and Jihoon backed away, until his foot caught at a jagged edge of concrete and he found himself tripping backwards, staring up with wide eyes as Ba stalked towards him.

He lifted a fist, looking down with a dead, emotionless stare which lacked remorse.

“wai-Auck!”

The impact of the punch was overwhelming, as if in a single motion his insides had halted function, cutting off his airway and leaving him gasping and choking like a fish starved of water.

He whipped his glare up with bloodshot eyes, watching fearfully as another punch came, again and again, without sparing him a single moment to recover.

~

“Woozi!” Seungcheol banged on the barrier with desperation, looking through the glass hoplessly.

He turned back to the boy sat behind him, who held a carefree smirk as he enjoyed the massacre taking place behind the screen, like watching a movie.

“He’s going to kill him!”

“He won’t” He spoke plainly. “But you don’t have to worry about that. He’ll be mine soon, remember?”

~

Jihoon rolled to the side, just barely evading the fist that came down on him again, causing the floor surrounding his fist to chip away in a flurry of concrete dust. He clutched his stomach as he stood, spitting out a glob of blood with a bitter expression.

He was healing quickly, way quicker than he usually did, but this guy was ing relentless. He didn’t even give him a chance to breath between beatings.

Although, compared to the torture he’d experienced before, this was nothing… It Wasn’t nearly enough to make his powers come out.

“Is that all you’ve got?” he questioned with a trembling voice, following with his eyes as Ba clopped towards him.

At his words, the demon paused, turning to the side of the glass to face his master. It was as if they were communicating without the use of words, so that Jihoon wouldn’t have a clue what to expect. Then, he faced him again. Ba placed two hands over his own chest, where a surge of energy glowed surrounding his heart. Jihoon’s stomach lurched when he reached inside, hands disappearing up to the wrist within the glowing pool surrounding his chest cavity, pulling out two long sickles from within.

Oh …

It began with a kick from one large hoof, knocking him back against the glass with a rippling of disturbed energy. He looked up, only to see his figure closing in on him faster than the human eye would be able to trace.

He raised the sickle, dragging a jagged blade down the glass, producing a shrill, ear-splitting cry. Jihoon cringed.

“Yield, brother.” One head spoke, in a deep, reverberate tone. His collar sparked as he did so, like a punishment, leading Jihoon to believe he wasn’t supposed to be opening his mouth at all. Another head pushed its way to the front, tilting towards him. “I… will not show mercy.”

“So, you’re not mute?” He wiped a hand along his mouth, clearing the stain of blood from his lips. “Then answer me. What the hell are these human bastards planning?”

Ba said nothing, limbs twitching forward, as if struggling to hold back.

“Tell me!”

His arm jolted, electricity sparking from the collar bounding him. Jihoon whipped his head to the side, squinting at the figures beyond the glass. The collar looked similar to the one he’d had before… But why did it hold so much control over such a high-level demon?

“Gak-!” His eyes shook as they whipped back, staring at the sickle which had penetrated his shoulder, dragging painfully against the bone. “F-…”

Ba’s expression had returned to an emotionless state like a switch had gone off. He drew away the sickle with a sharp movement, dragging the blade along his shoulder until blood was spirting from the wound, gushing. Jihoon held a hand there to stop it, groaning in pain.

Ba stabbed him again, in the same spot, drawing a retched moan of pain from him as it stabbed through the hand he’d held there.

“S..Stop.. Ah-” The sickle lifted away slowly, flesh stinging at the jagged draw of the blade.

… ! Was he actually going to die here or something? What a stupid ing way to kick the bucket…

He breathed hard, feeling panicked. He looked up at Ba, hoping to get through to him… What was he going to do otherwise? Despite his confidence, it seemed he still couldn’t control his goddamn powers…

Ba lifted a sickle, prepared to strike another time. But when he met Jihoon’s eyes, something within him snapped. His dull eyes awoke with a sheen of shock and curiosity.

All four heads faced him, mouths hanging open, eyes darting to stare into him. They spoke in unison, twitching at the shock of the collar. “…Duke Aym.”

Jihoon stood straight in shock. “Wha- You…You know my father?”

The demon stepped backwards, with an odd expression. Like he was terrified, despite his obvious advantage in power.

Jihoon stepped forward. “How did you-”

His words halted when the demon lifted his sickles, placing the two blades held in each hand on either side of his own split necks. His collar sparked maniacally, limbs spasming against their own will. It was very obvious that he was acting against his master’s orders, yet somehow his own sudden willpower was strong enough to fight against the chains which bound him.

The four heads spoke together, staring at Jihoon as bursts of power jolted from its figure, voice echoing with inhuman reverb.

“g̵l̷o̷r̸i̸a̵e̷ ̵n̸a̴t̴u̴m̸ ̵v̶i̵d̸e̷t̴e̸ ̶r̸e̴g̴e̷m̶”

“W-what..”

In a single sweep of the two blades, all four heads were severed from the neck, toppling to the floor. And after shock had passed and Jihoon had registered what exactly had just happened before his eyes, the demon’s body had gone limp, laid against the floor in a growing puddle of blood.

Jihoon stepped forward carefully, leaning in to check for signs of life… Of course, most demons would not survive a beheading, but there was always a chance.

There was no sign of living left in Ba.

He…. Won.

He won? Jihoon turned to the glass, breathing hard. Why wasn’t the barrier dropping?

He stepped forward, noticing with a stuttering of his heartbeat that, through the reflection of the glass, he could see himself. The faint image of his visage stared back at him with bright red eyes… Just like his fathers.

Since when did his eyes…

He shook the shock away from his face, knocking on the glass. Now wasn’t the time to be surprised. “Let me the out, you lunatic. You lost!”

Nothing happened. He could make out muffled, angry voices from beyond the glass, two blurred images huddled together.

He lifted a fist, prepared to knock on the glass, but before he could make contact, the barrier was shattering.

He saw Seungcheol first, straddling fake Jeonghan on the couch, driving an angry fist into the boy’s unconscious face. As if a mirage had broken, his image was shifting, until the body of a boy he didn’t recognize had replaced that of Jeonghan, lying listlessly.

“Who the hell is that?”

“Woozi!” Seungcheol hopped up, running towards him like an overexcited dog, twisting him in every which direction to check his well-being. He paid special attention to his shoulder, eyeing the blood stain on his sweater with a wince. “Are you okay?”

He pulled away, chest fluttering. “I’m fine… Didn’t I tell you I had a plan?”

“What, to let him beat the out of you?”

He turned away from him with a guilty expression, biting at his lip. “Well…”

“… Are you serious? That was the plan?”

“Well, it worked...Somehow.” He closed his mouth, holding his tongue between his teeth with a tight frown. Brushing his stupid plan aside, he remembered the issue at hand again, whipping his gaze back to the boy laying motionless on their old couch. “Uh… but, what happened to him?”

Seungcheol crossed his arms, frustrated. “I guess he wasn’t expecting his own demon to off itself like that. After you won, he wouldn’t open the barrier… So I… You know.”

“Beat the out of him?” He asked, with the slightest hint of a smile playing at his lips.

“Yeah…”

He stepped forward towards the couch, nudging his face to the side. “What should we do now?”

Seungcheol shrugged, crossing his arms in consideration.

When he looked down, recognizing the bump in his pocket to be a phone, he reached towards it with realization. He stared into the device, reading the messages displayed on the home screen curiously.

It seemed like that partner guy of his was starting to get antsy….

“Why don’t we try to make a trade?” Seungcheol asked. “I don’t know what they’ll do to Jeonghan if we don’t have any leverage to get him back…”

Jihoon swiped a finger across the screen, staring at the prompt for a 4 digit code. “How? I can’t open the phone.”

Just as he began fiddling with the device, it was lighting up with an incoming phone call, displaying the name of the person he had been texting all this time.

C

Mobile

Accept 📱 Decline ⛔

~

The meeting spot was in a remote location on the outskirts of town. And for the sake of avoiding attention, they met once the sun had set. They agreed to do the exchange alone, so he had no choice but to leave Woozi behind, although it took a lot of convincing to make stay. Seungcheol placed a simple spell on the boy to keep him unconscious until then, then took a taxi, acting as if he were helping a drunken friend get home.

He’d recognized the voice on the phone… So, when he walked into the alleyway and saw Chanyeol, supporting an unconscious Jeonghan against his back, it wasn’t too big of a shock. Still, Seungcheol felt bitter. Just how many of these bastards were sneaking around at school?

Seungcheol propped the boy up against a wall, waiting as Chanyeol did the same, before crossing past him to reach his friend’s side, eyeing him cautiously until he knew for sure he wasn’t going to pull anything.

He fussed over him quickly, feeling relieved to see that aside from a few faint bruises, he was uninjured.

“We’re leaving for today… But this isn’t over, Choi Seungcheol.”

He turned to him, dumbfounded. “You’ve really changed up your attitude since this morning, huh…. Honestly, you people are like snakes.”

He said nothing, lifting his friend up to support him as he began to leave.

“Wait.” Seungcheol stopped him, “Just… Why are you people doing this to me?”

Chanyeol looked at him with eyes filled with resentment, as if despite Seungcheol not having a clue, Chanyeol knew everything. “Don’t act as if you don’t know.”

Seungcheol breathed out, exasperated. “Why would I know? If not for Kyungsoo, I…” He stopped himself, clenching his fists. He was wasting his energy being angry… He didn’t need to start another fight; he just needed some closure… “Just tell me why…”

“Whether you think so or not, you’re a part of this, Seungcheol. You started this war.”

Seungcheol stood up. “I don’t want to be a part of this, Chanyeol! I don’t… I don’t care about any of this. I’ll give you the book… If you’ll leave us alone, I’ll give you anything, so-“

Chanyeol shook his head. “It’s deeper than the book, Seungcheol.”

“Then what?” He called out, before Chanyeol could slip away past the shadows of the alleyway. “Just what the hell can I do to make you ers leave me alone?!”

Chanyeol turned around just slightly, facing Seungcheol with a spiteful expression. “Ask your mother, Mr. town hero.”

Seungcheol’s felt a drop in his stomach, stalk-still as Chanyeol slipped away passed the darkness of the walkway. He stood there for a long moment, with a foreboding feeling gnawing at the back of his mind.

What does his mom have to do with any of this?

~

Jeonghan woke up the following hour, eyes snapping open like a princess awoken from a spell. He had no memory of the days prior, not even of what had happened before he’d been captured. He remembered working on a project at school late at night, then nothing. It was like when you wake up from a dream without any memory about what it was about, with nothing but lingering emotions.

Seungcheol explained everything to him, and Jeonghan listened with a heavy heart. It seemed like the shock of his classmate being a part of this was far more daunting than anything else. But nonetheless, Seungcheol felt guilty. Even though Jeonghan would reassure him and thank him for getting him back safe, his heart felt heavy knowing that this was his fault… And even heavier knowing it wasn’t over.

But… Seungcheol didn’t know how to bring up the hint about his mom… And Jihoon didn’t know how to explain Ba’s final words to him. The three of them felt disconnected, and scared. Their lives were unraveling.

For the time being, Jeonghan told him to forget about it. They would return to the problem after finals. At least then, they would have the time and emotional energy to sit down and have a proper discussion.

And in the midst of this madness, in recovering from the shock and anxiety, and feeling even more on guard than before, the week was passing before them. Friday came like a freight train.

The final test wasn’t simple, but it was nothing Seungcheol couldn’t figure out, with or without prior preparation. It was an accumulation of everything they’d learned through the year, summed up into one, over-complicated defensive spell.

His teacher applauded him for his work, shocked and surprised to see his success despite his lack of in-class participation. As usual, his classmates either envied or despised him.

And as usual, Seungcheol wished he could be anywhere other than here.

He left class after the test, staring into his phone at the message left from Jeonghan. After that day, he texted him about everything. If he stared into his phone with no word from him again, he wouldn’t feel safe.

Hannie: Can you pick up dish soap on your way home? I just remembered we ran out.

S.Coups: Sure. The orange one?

Hannie: Yup! 😊

Seungcheol smiled slightly. At least some things still felt normal.

He took a detour to the store, which added an extra 30 minutes to his trip home. The time was taken to think, to calm his nerves. Usually he would be excited about the start of Summer break, but this time… he felt uneasy. When he got back home, they would have to go back to the drawing board and come up with a new plan.

Hannie: Are you on your way back? 🤔

S.coups: Yeah, I’ll be there in 10. What’s up?

Hannie: Nothing! I’m making dinner, it’ll be done soon so hurry home.

He chuckled. Only Jeonghan could get kidnapped, ace his final project, and still have energy to cook up a meal after school. He was the ace of their house, really.

Seungcheol trudged up the walkway of the house, bag of soap in arm. He jiggled the keys into the lock, stepping inside and squinting at the darkness.

Why did Jeonghan shut all the curtains?

He shut the door behind him and stepped forward, flicking on the light switch before moving into the living room.

“Surprise!”

He dropped the soap.

The moment the lights were on, his friends were popping up from behind couches, doorways, and curtains. Yelling out to him with smiles on their faces, popping open bottles of champagne and blowing through noisemakers, all while Seungcheol stood in the hallway, shocked into silence.

“Wh-… What’s everyone doing here?”

Soonyoung jumped forward, dragging Seungcheol further into the living-room by the wrist. “It’s our end of the year party!”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” He eyed Jeonghan with wide eyes, heart pattering. Jeonghan nodded to him, as if to reassure him. He didn’t see Woozi at all, so… he assumed the cat wasn’t out of the bag. Had they all planned this together?

“We wanted to surprise you.” He explained, pushing Seungcheol into his usual seat. When he looked down, he was staring at a cake, with the words ‘happy summer!’ written messily on the top in red icing. It was obviously homemade.

Seungcheol looked up at them, scanning the room. Every one of his friends… all of them, they stood before him smiling, proud of the shock imprinted on their friend’s face.

Soonyoung chuckled at him. “You’re like an open book, Coups. Even if you don’t say anything… We all know you’ve been stressed lately. And you’re always the one handling our parties… So, this time, we planned it for you. Surprise!”

His mouth hung open, speechless. He whipped his gaze back down to the cake, reading the words over and over again to occupy his mind, to stop his emotions from whirling out of his own control. All this time he’d done nothing but stress, and worry, and be angry. He’d barely thought about his friends the past month, for s sake… He didn’t even think they would have a party this year, with all the going on.

“Seungcheol?” Seokmin spoke up, stepping forward. He realized with wide eyes, watching droplets of water patter against the surface of the cake, that Seungcheol was crying. “S-seungcheol! Are you okay?”

Seungcheol shook his head to reassure them, covering his eyes with his palms. He sniffled, choking on his own emotions in an attempt to smother them. This was too much. No matter how ty a friend he was, or how many secrets he kept from them, or even all the time’s he’d blown them off to deal with his own issues…. Why were they still here?

These guys were far, far too good for him.

Jeonghan smiled, letting out a sigh. “The cake’s gonna be salty, you big baby.”

“S-sorry.” He sniffed, face burning in embarrassment.

“Don’t be sorry!” Seungkwan called, jumping forward and hugging Seungcheol’s side with a sob. “I’m so glad we’re friends…” He sniffed. “I love you, Coups.”

Seungcheol held his sleeve against his eyes, stuttering through his words as he felt his friend embrace his side, trembling through tears. “I-I love you guys… I’m so sorry….”

Jeonghan smiled, stepping back to pour champagne into a red plastic cup. He’d hesitated when Soonyoung had asked him yesterday, to help them surprise their hyung with a party. It felt crazy to even think about partying right now. But… He was glad he’d agreed in the end. Seungcheol needed this.

Once the waterworks had ceased, they started up their celebrations. They chatted about anything other than school, and drank together, and listened to music, and… For the first time in a long time, Seungcheol was happy.

He stood up, wobbling slightly as he made his way to the kitchen, leaning into Jeonghan’s side, who’d been preparing snacks for them to much on.

“What about Woozi?” He whispered.

“He’s hiding in your room. I locked the door just in case, so don’t worry.”

He caught Jisoo approaching from the corner of his eye. Really, he wanted to press on, but he couldn’t as long as their house was filled to the brim.

Seungcheol muttered out an okay, grabbing a handful of chips before making his way back to the couch. If Woozi joined them, it would be too much to explain, since everyone who knew him here had heard a different lie… But he wished they could all be together for this. Woozi was one of them, now.

“Coups! Get the beer from the fridge!” Chan called out with a grin.

“Yah! You’re not drinking, you punk!”

~

It was pretty late when they’d finally tossed in their socks and called it a night. Seungcheol closed the door on the last person out, Seokmin, who left wobbling down the street back to his place. Seungcheol’s smile persisted, feeling giddy. Though, it could be because he was just a bit tipsy.

“Here.” Jeonghan handed him a six pack of beer, smirking.

“What? You still wanna drink?”

He breathed out a laugh, shaking his head. “No, not me. It’s for you and Woozi.” He explained. “I’m going to bed, so… Good luck.”

Jeonghan snuck away to his bedroom mischievously, leaving Seungcheol holding the pack of beer with a dumbfounded expression. Was Woozi even awake?

He knocked on the door, listening to the faint pattering of feet approaching, greeting the demon before him with a lopsided grin. His eyes flickered to the box in his hands, raising an eyebrow curiously.

“Wanna have a drink together?”

“Huh?”

Seungcheol stepped past him, sitting on the floor beside his bed. When he waved him over, Woozi joined him, sitting beside him reluctantly.

“I’ve... Never had this before.”

Seungcheol chuckled. “Alcohol?”

“No, beer.” He took the can that was handed to him, curious.

Seungcheol helped him crack it open, tapping his own can against his in a celebratory manner, before gulping back a mouthful.

Though hesitant, Woozi took a sip, face twisting. “This is disgusting…”

“You’ll get used to it. Most people don’t really drink it for the flavour, anyways.”

Woozi continued to drink despite his complaints, chugging through most of the can to get it over with quickly, while Seungcheol sipped idly at his side.

Woozi placed his empty can down on the floor, grimacing when Seungcheol passed him a new one. “Aren’t you drunk enough already?”

He leaned back. “Nah, I didn’t drink that much.” His memories caught up to him in the moment, letting out a faint laugh to himself as he reminisced.

“What?”

He fiddled with the can with a humored smile. “I was just thinking about last time I came home drunk. You thought I’d forget everything in the morning, so you spilled your guts to me… And freaked out afterwards.” He turned to him, leaning an arm against the bed as he smiled down at the demon. “Do you trust me more now? Compared to then, I mean.”

Woozi took a sip. His cheeks were red already, leading Seungcheol to assume he was a lightweight. But the combination of angry and flushed was endearing to him. It always was.

“Shut up… Back then I was scared out of my ing mind, you know.” He fiddled with the tab of the can. “Of course, I trust you a little more now.”

“Just a little?” Seungcheol asked with a pout.

He sighed. “Fine, a lot. Do I really have a choice, though?”

Seungcheol laughed before finishing his can, grabbing another from the pack and cracking it open.

“You have really good friends.” Woozi spoke quietly, hiding his expression behind his drink. “I don’t really know them that well, but… I can’t imagine a bad friend would do like this for you.”

“I have the best ing friends in the world.” Seungcheol breathed.

“Huh… It seems nice. I’m kind of envious.”

When Seungcheol turned to him again, Woozi was frowning. He probably didn’t have friends like this back where he came from… And he really couldn’t imagine going through all that without a single person to fall back on. Seungcheol wished he could punch Woozi’s mom and dad through a roof, but he would probably get his soul eaten if he tried.

He settled with trying to make up for all those years without him.

“You’re one of my friend’s, you know.” He faced him, feeling oddly shy. “You’re one of the most important people in the world to me, Wooz.”

The demon’s eyes widened, just slightly. Not enough for Seungcheol to register the sense of epiphany in his expression, but enough for him to know that his words meant something to him.

The demon breathed up a bout of courage, facing the wall.

“Jihoon.” He spoke, a single word.

Seungcheol’s mouth remained open, confused enough to fall silent. Although somewhere in his mind, he knew the intention behind that word, but he really couldn’t believe it unless he heard him explain it directly.

Woozi continued, with an expression that was almost a smile, turning to stare up at him firmly. “My real name is Jihoon.”

Seungcheol gulped. “…Really?”

Jihoon’s heart was thumping madly. But it wasn’t because he was scared. This conversation was long overdue. For a while now… He’s known that he has nothing to worry about when it comes to this stupid human. Because for a long time now, Seungcheol has been the most important person in his life. “Yeah.” He answered, not breaking eye-contact. “You can still call me Woozi if you want to, though.”

He remembered their first day together, when he’d summoned him. Back then he’d refused to tell him his name, and Seungcheol hadn’t cared. He hadn’t even thought about it until just now.

“Jihoon?” Seungcheol said it quietly, gauging his reaction with an anxious fluttering of his chest.

“Y-yeah.” He looked away, skin flushed red. Whether it was from drinking, or from hearing his name called for the first time since he came to the human world, he didn’t know. He didn’t care.

Seungcheol shifted, facing him properly. “Am I the first person you’ve told?”

“Of course you are…” He quipped. “Who the hell else would I tell?”

Seungcheol leaned forward, pressing on. “Not even Jeonghan?”

He blushed up to his ears, flustered. “What? Should I have told Jeonghan first?”

Seungcheol held his hand up defensively. “No! I’m happy!” He smiled brightly, feeling on the verge of crying again. He was so, so ing happy. It felt like a dream. And maybe it was the alcohol, or maybe it was something else, but Seungcheol couldn’t help but feel like there was no better time to say this. He placed his hands on either side of the demon’s shoulders. “J-Jihoon, I…”

Jihoon’s expression fell, mouth parted as Seungcheol sputtered before him.

“Jihoon, I think I….” He huffed, lowering his face to shield his expression. Jihoon could see his ears flushing, redder than hellfire. “! Why is this so hard?”

“…What is it?”

Seungcheol looked him at him, staring into round brown eyes longingly.

I love you. I love you, you hot-headed, sailor-mouthed, pink-haired fool. I love you so much it hurts. I love you so much that I can’t even find the words to explain how much I love you…

Those words repeated in his head like a script, as if his own thoughts were harassing him. But his mouth hung open, stuttering without producing a single coherent line of confession. This has never been hard before… Because he’d never been the person to say it first. He accepted confessions; he didn’t make them!

“I think….”

Jihoon’s heart was beating in his throat, threatening to burst. The expression on Seungcheol’s face was one he’d hardly seen before. Desperate, and pining. The hands on his shoulders were trembling, but they held him firmly.

“Damnit…” Seungcheol tossed aside that hopeless string of words, and pulled Jihoon in by the shoulders. While the demon remained bewildered and unexpectant, he kissed him.

Jihoon didn’t pull away. He simply froze, feeling the oddly familiar touch of lips fall against his…

It wasn’t the first time, but it was a completely distinct sensation. It wasn’t thoughtless and rough, like when Seungcheol had gone crazy on demon blood and forced his way in. It was soft, and gentle, and…

Wait, what the is happening?

He thought about fighting the approach, eyes wide as he watched Seungcheol’s shut tightly, but he couldn’t. He didn’t dare push him away.

It wasn’t a deep kiss. It was chaste, and shallow, but also lingering, and slow. After such a brief moment of intimacy, Seungcheol was pulling away, staring down at his lips with a flushed, infatuated expression, noses brushing together at the tip as they breathed, not saying anything.

The room was dark, and quiet… But their heartbeats were so loud. Before, Jihoon had accepted the Blood-induced make-out session as his first kiss. But now he knew he’d been wrong, because that had never been a kiss. A real kiss left you breathless, and silent. It was listening to his own heartbeat ring against his ear while he stared into doe-eyes and smelled the alcohol lingering in his breath.

It was the uncertainty of fingers trembling at his side, holding his cheek, warm and red from the intoxication of the moment, and stuttering out uneasy words.

Seungcheol dropped his hand slowly, watching as Jihoon said nothing. He just stared at him, eyes wide in shock, lips parted.

“I’m sorry…” He turned away, ruffling his own hair in embarrassment. “I.. Shouldn’t have done that without asking. I’m sorry, Jihoon…”

Jihoon grabbed his wrist, pulling it down to the floor to bring him back again. He pressed his lips to Seungcheol’s. This time the kiss wasn’t dry, because the moment they connected again, Seungcheol was cradling the back of his head with a hand and holding him. He rested his back against the carpet floor, crawling over him, intertwining thin fingers with his own, and kissing him deeply. This time, Jihoon shut his eyes.

Their first real kiss tasted like beer, and smelled like ocean cologne.