Gladiolus – strength

                Yongguk smiled seeing Daehyun perked up once he opened the curtains. The younger man had his body wrapped in the blanket while sitting on the bed. His cheeks dimpled from his broad grin as his eyes were fixed at the large window.

                “What do you see? Is it better compared to yesterday?” Yongguk asked, still standing by the window. Unlike his mate, he had put on his shorts right after getting off the bed.

                “I don’t know. The change is very small from day to day. But last week, I had never thought seeing this much light is possible,” Daehyun said, feeling deeply moved at his own improvement.

                Yongguk was more than happy to hear that. “That’s great. That means your sight is getting better little by little,” he said before pulling back the semi sheer curtains.

                Daehyun heard the sound it made. “What did you just do? Did you close the curtains?”

                “I just closed a layer of them.” Yongguk turned to look at his mate, confused at the man’s curious act.

                “Your room has more than one layer of curtains?” Daehyun asked as if it was very bizarre. The ones in the guest room he was staying were nothing like those.

                “There are just two of them.”

                Daehyun frowned, head tilted to the side. “What for? And why is the light still there?” He felt like a dumb five-year-old for asking that question, but he was too curious to care.

                Yongguk looked at the semi sheer curtains again and finally realized what Daehyun meant. “Oh, this layer is the one that let some light in.”

                Daehyun gasped. “There’s something like that?! I never knew! Is that why the light changes?”

                “What? When I do this?” Yongguk fully opened the curtains again.

                Daehyun’s eyes widened, as well as his smile. “Wow, that’s amazing! The light becomes… more!”

                Yongguk chuckled at how excited Daehyun was being. “You mean brighter?”

                “I guess it is! Oh wow. It’s so amazing,” Daehyun breathed out, still gazing at the window like it was the strangest thing in the world.

                Yongguk too was still wearing his warm smile. He padded towards the side of the bed where his mate was sitting at. With his palms pressed on the mattress, he crouched down until he was directly facing the other, completely blocking the younger man’s view from the window.

                Daehyun could feel how close Yongguk was when their breaths mingled with each other. “Oh, it’s even brighter now,” he remarked.

                Yongguk snorted a laugh. Just those few words from his mate could give him butterflies. He wondered if he could still be the brightest to Daehyun once the man can see everything. But on second thought, it didn’t really matter as long as he could see the smile on Daehyun’s face.

                “I can’t wait to show you more amazing things,” he said before pecking Daehyun’s lips.

                Daehyun giggled. He released the hem of the blanket, making it pool around him, to wrap his arms around Yongguk’s neck. “I’m looking forward to it,” he muttered before pulling Yongguk for another kiss.

                It was not supposed to be long, but the kiss was getting more and more intense. Neither of them seemed to have enough of each other. Yongguk gradually climbed onto the bed, hands running up and down Daehyun’s back. Their lips and tongues collided with each other until Daehyun ended up lying on his back.

                “Are we really going to do it?” Daehyun asked when they finally decided to take a breather. His hands cupping Yongguk’s face right above his.

                “It’s your fault for being so adorable,” Yongguk said before leaning down to claim Daehyun’s lips once more. It did not last long though because Daehyun forced him to stop.

                “Don’t you need to go to your father’s company today? You’ll be late,” Daehyun reminded the young alpha.

                “I don’t care.” Yongguk resumed what he was doing before. He wedged one of his knees between Daehyun’s legs, followed by the other when Daehyun had opened them wider for him.

                Just when the heat started stirring in them, someone knocked on the door.

                Yongguk stopped kissing his mate that instant. “It’s mom,” he said, making Daehyun gasped in surprise.

                “I need my clothes,” Daehyun uttered, trying to sit up on the bed.

                Yongguk scrambled down the bed, searching and picking up their clothes from the floor before handing them out to his mate.

                “Just a minute, mom!” Yongguk shouted when Minjee knocked for the second time.

                After putting on his shirt, Yongguk had to take deep breaths while walking around the room since he needed to calm down his excitement. Daehyun on the other hand was busy making the bed.

                When both of them were finally relaxed, Yongguk went to open the door. “Yeah, mom?”

                “Can I talk to both of you?” Minjee asked.

                For a second, Yongguk just observed his mother’s serious face before stepping back from the door. “Sure. Come in.”

                Minjee made her way into the room, going towards Daehyun who was getting down the bed. “Morning, Daehyun,” she said as she took a hold of the young man’s arm.

                “Morning, Aunt Minjee,” Daehyun replied while being led to the sofas.

                Yongguk went to sit on another sofa adjacent from the other two. “What is it you wanted to talk about?”

                Minjee breathed in. “Alright, so, the thing is, your father and I have been thinking to invite Heeyeon for dinner.”

                Yongguk frowned and he found Daehyun to be the same when he glanced at the man. “What? Why would you want to do that?”

                “No, hear me out. Since you’re going to reject her, we think it’s better to tell her in a nice and proper way,” Minjee explained. “She needs to reject you too. You wouldn’t want her to suffer, or worse, die, do you?”

                Yongguk sighed. “Mom, if she were to suffer because I rejected her, then she would’ve felt the pain that very same night when I left her. I would’ve stayed if I accept her as my mate.”

                “But you left her because you had to,” Minjee argued. “Maybe your mind thought that you reject her, but what about your heart? Because she didn’t seem like someone who had just been rejected by her mate.”

                “Then maybe she is not my mate.” Yongguk sighed, shaking his head. “Mom, in my mind or my heart, there’s only Daehyun as my mate,” he insisted. “You believe me, right? I never had the slightest thought of accepting her.”

                “I think…” Daehyun suddenly spoke up, making Yongguk and Minjee turn to him. “I think it’s not a bad idea to meet her… It’s better to get this problem cleared up.”

                “Are you really okay with it, Daehyun?” Minjee asked, holding on to Daehyun’s hand. “I came to talk to you about this because I wanted to make sure you’re really okay to meet her.”

                Daehyun pressed his lips together. He could feel Yongguk’s quizzical stare on him, but since the man was not saying anything, he decided to make his own choice. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

                It had only been several days since Heeyeon last came to the mansion, but now, the woman that Daehyun wished never came into his and Yongguk’s life was sitting right across him.

                The whole clan was present at the dinner and Dongwan had introduced all of them to Heeyeon before they started eating. The members were being nice and polite as always, but anybody could know that they were not as thrilled as when they first met Daehyun. And for Daehyun himself, tonight’s dinner is the most uncomfortable one he had ever had at the mansion.

                “Excuse me, Daehyun-ssi?” Heeyeon called. Daehyun stopped eating and lifted his head, directing his gaze towards her. “Pardon me for asking, but are you blind?”

                Daehyun was quite taken aback by that and he believed he was not the only one. It was not like he was offended by it or something. It was just that he had never met someone as straightforward as Heeyeon.

                “Y-Yes, I am…” he admitted.

                “So, you are supposedly Yongguk’s mate?” Heeyeon asked, making Daehyun’s heart skipped a beat. “Are you marked and bonded with him?”

                Daehyun tried to hide his flustered side and remained calm. “No, not yet since I’m new to all of this. I’m not a weredragon, so I need more time to-”

                “You’re not a weredragon?” Heeyeon cut in, eyes wide in surprise. “So that’s why I’ve been feeling something off about you. Then, what are you?”

                Daehyun lowered down his head. “I’m just… a human,” he said, just above a whisper.

                Heeyeon breathed out in disbelief. “Wow, a weredragon with a human mate? I haven’t heard of that before. Are you sure you’re really Yongguk’s mate?”

                Daehyun might have told himself to appear strong and composed in front of the woman, but every word that came out from Heeyeon’s mouth felt like thousands of daggers and he found himself slowly crumbling down. At last, he was lost for words.

                Yongguk could see all of that, even when he was just staring at the side of Daehyun’s face. So, he placed a reassuring hand on the man’s thigh. “I am very sure about that,” he told Heeyeon firmly while looking straight into her eyes.

                “Alright,” Dongwan heaved a deep breath when everyone was silenced. “Wow, you’re quite a talkative one, aren’t you?” he pointed out in a joking manner to their guest.

                “Oh.” Heeyeon put a hand on , then lowered it down to her chest. “Did I talk too much? I’m so sorry.” She grimaced.

                Dongwan shook his head. “Oh, no, that’s alright. It’s a good thing. We don’t want you to feel uncomfortable here.”

                “I like it here. All of you are very nice.” Heeyeon looked around, flashing her beautiful smile at every member of the clan. “The food is delicious too. And, oh, I should’ve mentioned it earlier that I talk a lot and sometimes I just speak my mind without knowing.”

                Jongup leaned back against his seat, just so he could whisper to his brother. “That goes without saying.”

                Everyone resumed their meals after that. While doing so, Dongwan kept the conversation going between him and Heeyeon.

                “So, Heeyeon, you’re a lone alpha, right? Did you move in to this town on your own?

                “Yeah, my clan split up.”

                “How long has it been?”

                “Just recently. Most of the clan members got married and moved out of the town to join their partner’s clan. They left one by one, until there were just me and my dad. So when my dad passed away a couple of months ago, I decided to leave my hometown and start a new life.”

                Dongwan just nodded his head. “I’m sorry to hear about your father. But why did you choose to come here?”

                Heeyeon shrugged her shoulders. “I just wanted to find a place where I could go to the forest and shift into my dragon form once in a while and it turns out that this town also had a job offering with good salary and a nice apartment for me to stay.”

                “What are you working as?” Minjee asked.

                “I’m just a bank teller,” Heeyeon replied to the luna who was sitting beside her.

                “That’s a decent job,” Dongwan said.

                Heeyeon turned to the alpha again. A frown slowly etched on her face. “Is this why you’re having me here? Because you wanted to dig about my                 background?”

                Dongwan breathed out a laugh. “No, no. It’s not really like that. Though you could say that we wanted to get to know you better rather than what you just said earlier.”

                “So, what is it really about?” Heeyeon wondered.

                Dongwan threw a quick glance at Yongguk and Daehyun, and also his wife. After taking a deep breath, he connected his eyes with Heeyeon’s again. “Actually, as you know, Yongguk isn’t going to accept you as his mate,” he began deliberately. “So, I suggest you to reject him as well to avoid getting hurt later.”

                Heeyeon’s expression turned dark. “I’m not going to reject him. He’s my mate,” she stated sternly. “And I don’t care if he rejects me. I don’t care if I die. I’m a lone dragon. I have nothing to lose.”

                Dongwan had a glimpse of everyone around the table. Heeyeon’s answer was an utter surprise to them, moreover to Yongguk and Daehyun. And now, the clan members were all eyes and ears on both of the girl and him. “Heeyeon-ssi, none of this clan members would have the heart to do so,” he softly said to her.

                “Then, don’t reject me,” Heeyeon said, staring at Yongguk before turning back to Dongwan. “I’d be okay if he doesn’t have any feelings for me. He can both have Daehyun and me as his mates. I won’t mind,” she bluntly suggested.

                “Oh my god,” Daehyun scoffed out of a sudden, grabbing everyone’s attention. “What about me? Do you think I won’t mind?” His voice and face were full of disgust and irritation because the girl was seriously asking for it.

                Heeyeon’s stare was fixed on Daehyun and for a moment, she just stayed like that. “Tell your mate to reject me then,” she spoke up, sounding cold and hard. She then grabbed her bag and stood up. “I’ll take my leave now. Thanks for the meals,” she bowed before making her way out of the mansion on her own.

                That night, some of the Empyreans were making rounds again. However, in the middle of doing so, the rain started pouring.

                Yongguk and Himchan decided to take shelter under a closed shop’s awning, thinking that there would be nobody out in the heavy rain.

                “If Daehyun isn’t really my mate, why do I felt like dying when he almost rejected me?” Yongguk voiced up the lingering concern in his mind.

                “Maybe he is your mate.” Himchan shrugged his shoulders. “But then again, maybe it’s just your mind playing tricks on you.”

                Yongguk groaned, fingers threading his hair. “Seriously, what should I do now?”

                Himchan pondered about it for a moment. “What if… you mate with Daehyun first? If you still feel attracted to the Heeyeon, you can mate with her too.”

                Yongguk turned to the latter, staring at him with wide eyes. “Then I’ll have two mates! That’s ridiculous!”

                “I’m just saying…” Himchan mumbled before jutting out his bottom lip.

                “What?! Two mates?!” Another voice suddenly sounded from above, startling both Yongguk and Himchan.

                They whipped their head upwards. There was Jiho, peering at them upside down from the awning. Yongguk and Himchan put their guards on. If it weren’t for the rain, they would have noticed his scent long ago.

                “How can that be possible?” Jiho asked.

                “It’s nothing of your concern.” Yongguk glared at him.

                “Oh come on!” Jiho pulled back before jumping down the awning. “Don’t be so greedy! You should give me one of them!” He stood in the rain, soaked from head to toe, but still had a smile on his face.

                Yongguk shook his head. “A guy like you don’t deserve to have a mate.”

                “What makes you do?” Jiho finally stepped under the awning, standing only inches apart from Yongguk. It made Himchan went even closer to Yongguk’s side. “You don’t even deserve to be an alpha of the clan.”

                Jiho’s words caused Yongguk’s stance to falter. But it was only for a second as he quickly gather himself again.

                “I know I don’t deserve to have a mate and I don’t really want any. I’m content with anyone who can satisfy my desires,” Jiho admitted. “But if you do want to give me one of your mates, I’d prefer the male.” He smirked.

                It seriously pissed Yongguk off, but he still got his anger under control. “Yeah, I’ll tell you when I do that. You just go wait quietly in your cave until then.”

                They stared right into each other’s eyes. Their jaw clenched and chin high. The air grew so tense that Himchan was completely stilled while looking at both of the alphas.

                Out of a sudden, a woman’s scream broke through the sound of the rain. They turned to the direction of the voice, except for Jiho. When Yongguk and Himchan looked back at him, he had a sinister smile on his face. Then, he ran off, towards the same direction where the scream came from.

                Yongguk quickly chased after Jiho with Himchan right behind him. At the same time, he linked to his clan, asking for some help.

                Himchan hissed when Hyosung dabbed the cut on his back with cotton. He was brought to the sick bay after returning to the mansion with the other members, who were also involved in the fight with the Massif clan. All of them suffered minor injuries and were scattered around the room to be treated.

                “Why do the Massifs never learned their lesson?” Himchan complained. “They obviously can’t win against us.”

                “Don’t underestimate them,” Yongguk countered while cleaning his own wounds all over his body. “We only realized they were attacking someone when we heard her scream. Jiho had easily managed to distract us.” He let out an exasperated sigh as he recalled about it. Dongwan was just quietly listening to it while giving some help to everybody in the room.

                “They are quite strong. We only have the advantage because we outnumber them. That’s why I want us to stick together,” he reminded the clan members because the previous fight dragged on for quite some time. They had to stop and make a run for it when a witness called the police, leaving behind the attacked woman safe and sound.

                “Yongguk hyung?” Daehyun called out the young alpha’s name as soon as he reached the sick bay with his brother’s lead.

                “I’m here.” Yongguk got up from the chair and went to his mate. He took Daehyun’s hands and brought them up to his lips.

                Jongup then left the both of them to find Youngjae. Like everybody else, the latter was covered in cuts and bruises.

                “Are you okay?” Jongup asked, standing next to Youngjae by the table that was scattered with medical supplies.

                “Yeah, I’m used to it.” Youngjae glanced at Jongup before continuing to wrap a bandage around his hands.

                Seeing the struggle, Jongup stopped Youngjae and took the bandage from him. “Here, let me help.”

                Youngjae did actually let him. He quietly watched how worried and careful Jongup was while tending him. “Thanks…” he muttered.

                Jongup looked up at him, giving him a warm smile before getting back to the task.

                “Are you hurt anywhere?” Daehyun asked. He really wanted to feel Yongguk’s face for the injuries, but he was afraid if he would hurt Yongguk even more. So, he just held Yongguk’s hands tight.

                “A bit… here and there.” Yongguk shrugged, answering nonchalantly.

                “Are they bad?”

                “Don’t worry,” Yongguk assured when a frown etched on Daehyun’s face, caressing Daehyun’s cheek at the same time. “Aunt Narae gave her healing toxin and the injuries will go away in no time.”

                “Alright…” Daehyun was slightly relieved to hear that. “Did you get them treated?”

                Yongguk twisted his limbs and body from side to side to check for his own injuries. “Not all of them. Not yet.”

                “Then, you should go and do so.”

                Yongguk raised his brows. “Aren’t you going to help me?”

                “No, I shouldn’t.” Daehyun breathed out with a small smile.

                “What do you mean? You can put a bandage on my wounds.”

                “No, hyung.” Daehyun’s expression eventually changed. He ducked down his head. “I really shouldn’t.”

                “Why not?” Yongguk asked with knitted eyebrows.

                “I’ll… only make it worst,” Daehyun mumbled. His voice wavered even when he tried not to.

                “What?” Yongguk scoffed as if it was the most ridiculous thing he had ever heard. “No, Daehyun. You won’t.”

                Even with Yongguk’ reassurance, Daehyun couldn’t help feeling overwhelmed. His eyes stung with fresh new tears. So, he released Yongguk’s hands to search for the doorframe, making it as a guide for him to walk out of the room.

                Yongguk quickly went after Daehyun, halting the man just outside the room. He stood in front of the latter while gently holding onto his arm. “Hey, are you… okay?”

                The tears finally started rolling down Daehyun’s cheeks. “I’m just… so worried about you…”

                Yongguk sighed. “I know…” He took Daehyun’s hand that was on the wall and the other back into his hold. “But I’m fine, right?”

                That was what Yongguk told him, but Daehyun could never know for sure. He didn’t know where Yongguk was injured, he didn’t know how bad the injuries were and he couldn’t take care of him.

                “You’re hurt and I can’t even do anything about it,” Daehyun muttered with restrained sniffles since he didn’t want to be loud near the clan members.

                “That’s not true, Daehyun,” Yongguk retorted.

                “I can’t help you in the fight. I can’t help you after,” Daehyun added. “I’m useless.”

                That one word broke Yongguk’s heart into pieces because he knew the feeling of being useless more than anyone else, or at least in the clan. A flightless sky dragon like him could never fit to be a leader. That was what he had always thought, until Daehyun came into his life. Daehyun had taught him not to make their flaws as an excuse not to do anything. That’s why Daehyun didn’t deserve to feel like that.

                He cupped Daehyun’s wet cheeks, lifting up Daehyun’s head and making them face each other properly. “No, Daehyun. You’re not useless,” he said firmly. ”You give me the strength that I need. You give me your love.”

                For a moment, Yongguk just stared into Daehyun’s unfocused eyes. He wanted to tell Daehyun how deep his feelings is towards him, but certainly, no words could describe it. So, he pulled Daehyun into a hug.

                “You are my mate,” he whispered. “My one and only mate. I am nothing without you.”

                Daehyun slowly brought up his hands to Yongguk’s to return the hug, being careful of Yongguk's injuries. He should’ve been the one saying that to Yongguk. Yongguk is the one and only for him, not the other way around. He wondered if he could give enough strength to Yongguk when he was the one who needed it the most at this time.