Daisy - Innocence & Purity

                Daehyun woke up lying on his belly, feeling colder than ever. The spot next to him on the bed, where Yongguk should be while embracing him, cuddling and tangling their limbs with each other, was strangely empty.

                Daehyun ran his hand across the sheets, reaching further towards the edge of the king sized bed to find his lover. Yongguk would always come to his room after the rounds. So when the man was nowhere there, Daehyun began to panic.

                He raised from the bed, propping up his body with both of his hands. “Yongguk hyung?!” he called out anxiously, wishing that it would be answered and nothing bad actually happened last night.

                A sound of someone clearing his throat came from the other side of the room, followed by a raspy, “I’m here.”

                Yongguk was in the room all along. He was just sitting in the armchair, looking up at the white ceiling while being lost in his thought, until he heard his mate calling his name.

                Daehyun could be relieved that Yongguk was with him in the least. Sitting up on the bed, he turned towards the direction of the voice. “What are you doing over there?”

                Yongguk brought down his head to look at Daehyun before shrugging his shoulders. “Nothing…?”

                Daehyun frowned at Yongguk’s grumpy tone. “Did you have a sleep?” he wondered.

                Yongguk huffed. “Barely.”

                “Is something wrong?” Daehyun asked, full of concern.

                Yongguk went silent, having some thought at the back of his mind. His eyes kept staring at his mate, wondering if he really should tell him about it.

                “Hyung…?” Daehyun was feeling even worried when Yongguk wasn’t saying anything. So he put the covers away, revealing his shirtless body with only his shorts on, before getting off the bed. Slowly, he made his way towards the chair where he supposed Yongguk was at, with small careful steps and hands sticking out in front of him.

                Yongguk instantly straightened up, reaching out for Daehyun’s outstretched hands. When they finally got a hold of each other, Daehyun was standing right in front of the latter, one hand clasped tightly with Yongguk’s while the other had found the older man’s face.

                “What is it?” Daehyun asked as his thumb was softly caressing Yongguk’s cheek.

                Yongguk stared at Daehyun’s anxious face above him. The younger man was genuinely worried about him. He wished Daehyun would never have to worry about anything because of him, but at the same time, he didn’t want to hide anything from his mate.

                His mate.

                That’s right. How could he forget? Daehyun is his mate after all. If there is someone who would know everything about him, it should be Daehyun.

                Yongguk gently pulled Daehyun down, telling the man to sit on his lap that was clad in pajama pants. Once Daehyun was settled there, his arms circled the lean torso and his head nestled up against the chest, making his bare skin warmed up by Daehyun’s.

                Yongguk breathed out a long sigh. “I can’t stop thinking about Heeyeon’s son…” he muttered, “…my brother’s son.”

                Daehyun was all ready to listen, his fingers already threading Yongguk’s hair at the back of his head. But when nothing came from the said man after that, he took a guess, “You can’t wait to meet him?”

                “True that,” Yongguk admitted, but it was only a tiny part of his problem. “Yet I still can’t wrap my head around it.”

                Daehyun’s brows knitted together. “What? That your brother has a son?”

                Yongguk hummed. “I just thought how happy he’d be to have a son. He should’ve been living happily with his little family.” He sighed heavily. “And the boy… he didn’t even have the chance to meet his father… If only –”

                “No, don’t say that,” Daehyun cut in, his tone pleading. He hugged Yongguk’s head with his cheek pressed on top of it. “You can’t change the past, hyung. But you can change the future,” he said before kissing the crown of Yongguk’s head. “Let’s give Yongnam hyung’s son the love and the life that he deserves.”

                A wave of calmness washed over Yongguk at every word said by Daehyun. He was stilled for a moment, letting the silence being filled with Daehyun’s rhythmic heartbeat.

                Then he pulled apart, looking up at his mate as his arms tightened around the younger man. “I’m so glad I got you right now.” He smiled before softly capturing Daehyun’s lips with his.

                Daehyun’s eyes widened at the unexpected kiss, but soon turned into slits when he chuckled. He cupped Yongguk’s face before leaning down until his nose met with Yongguk’s, their foreheads pressed against each other. “I’m glad I could be here with you,” he muttered with his eyes closed and giving the older man another sweet kiss.

                “Next time you can’t sleep, you should just wake me up,” he added after that.

                Yongguk smiled, honestly grateful for the offer. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

                A few more kisses were shared between them after that, which ended with Yongguk breathing out a content sigh. He secured his mate in his arms again before lifting him up, without any warning as usual. But Daehyun wasn’t that surprise anymore, just loosely hanging on to Yongguk’s neck. He might have gotten used to it, or that just shows how much he trusts his man now.

                “Well, now that my mate is making me feel so much better, I’m getting sleepy again,” Yongguk said while going towards the bed.

                “What time is it?” Daehyun asked as he was being lowered down and settled somewhere on the bed, seemingly in the middle of it.

                Yongguk glanced at the wall clock. “10 minutes to 8.”

                “You can still go to sleep for a couple of hours,” Daehyun suggested.

                “Not without you.” Yongguk kissed Daehyun again. This time intentionally with more force because getting Daehyun pushed down to the bed was what he actually wanted. And now, he was pinning the said man with his elbows propping up his body, still eating Daehyun’s face as he wills.

                But Daehyun managed to break the kiss and turned his face away with a loud giggle. “Ah, hyung! You’re heavy!” he whined, trying to push Yongguk away.

                Yongguk laughed before rolling off the slender body. Now lying on his side, he took Daehyun in his arms again, only to give him a hella lot more loving kisses. It was amazing how they still managed to fall asleep after that.

                The living room was quiet with Yongguk and his parents. They would either fidget in their seat or move around restlessly. They were excited, but also nervous at the same time, and the feelings were growing with every passing second.

                It was the time they had been waiting for; the time for them to meet a part of Yongnam they didn’t know exists before. Even the other members of the clan had went out or stayed at the other parts of the house, just to give them some space and time with the new addition in their family.

                When they finally caught a familiar scent approaching their house, they were stilled for a moment before giving each other a meaningful look.

                “They’re here,” Dongwan linked his thoughts with the other two.

                In mere seconds, they were already making their way to the front door with hastened steps. The bell rang just before they reached there.

                After Dongwan opened the door, all eyes were only searching for the little boy. He was just right there, right before them. The small boy was on his feet, holding onto his mother’s hand while hugging a dragon stuffed toy. His face is the exact copy of his father and his doe eyes were looking up at them curiously.

                All three of them couldn’t find any words to say. It was as if they were witnessing a miracle happening right before their eyes.

                “So…” Heeyeon spoke up, breaking the silence. “This is my son,” she told them before looking down to the boy.

                “He does resemble Yongnam,” Dongwan muttered.

                “His name is Yohan,” Heeyeon said. “Bang Yohan.”

                The said boy now had his eyes on Yongguk after gazing at each of them. Freeing his hand from his mother’s hold, he pointed to the tall man. “Papa?”

                The little boy stunned everyone, especially Yongguk himself. He really didn’t know how to react to that.

                Minjee could finally tear her eyes off the boy to look at her son. “He thinks you’re his father…”

                “I’m sorry,” Heeyeon was fast to apologize, taking away Yohan’s hand that was still pointing towards Yongguk. “I always showed him pictures of Yongnam oppa. He must have mistaken you for his father,” she explained with a regretful smile. Then she crouched down and held onto the boy’s arms, turning his body to make him face her properly. “Yohan-ah, he’s not your papa. He’s your uncle. You should call him Uncle Yongguk,” she clarified, but only received clueless blinks in return.

                Yongguk cleared his throat. “I think it’s okay,” he said before squatting down in front of the boy. “He’s still a baby. It must be hard to understand.” He smiled, hand reaching out to ruffle the boy’s hair.

                Yohan returned a wider smile, showing his straight tiny teeth. And when Yongguk opened his arms, he didn’t hesitate to throw himself onto the older man.

                Having the little body wrapped in his arms, Yongguk somehow felt like he was being reunited with his late brother. He could feel the warmth from the bond they have. He tightened his hold around the boy and stayed like that for as long as he could.

                Heeyeon and Yohan were invited into the house. Dongwan and Minjee had introduced themselves as grandpa and grandma to the boy. They were only starting to know each other by having small talks with Yohan, as far as the three year old boy could understand. Even in that short amount of time, Yohan managed to win their heart with his polite and charming manner.

                Daehyun joined them later on, telling Yohan to call him Uncle Daehyun in the first place, but only Uncle Dae came out from his little mouth. Daehyun was happy with that too.

                Afraid if the boy would get bored, Yongguk brought Yohan along with Daehyun to the other part of the living room, before bringing out his nephew and nieces’ toys to let Yohan play with them.

                “There’s no doubt that Yohan is Yongnam’s,” Dongwan said while watching at the boy happily playing. “But still, we need to make a DNA test since he’s going to be the heir of this family.”

                Heeyeon raised her brows at the clan’s leader. “An heir?”

                Dongwan turned to Heeyeon and nodded his head. “Yeah… He’s Yongnam’s son. He’s my grandson.”

                For a moment, Heeyeon just stared at the couple sitting in front of her, unable to get a word out. “I don’t know…” she breathed out a nervous laugh. “I just brought him here to meet you guys. I didn’t mean to make you name him as the heir.”

                “But he is the family’s heir,” Dongwan rendered the fact.

                Minjee sighed. “Are you worried that we might take him from you?” She smiled and continued before Heeyeon got to say anything. “You don’t have to. It wouldn’t be like that,” she assured. “But he is Yongnam’s son and you are Yongnam’s mate. So, if you’d like to join our clan, we will welcome you with open arms. You deserve to be a part of us.”

                Heeyeon couldn’t believe what she just heard. The feelings of being accepted into a clan was overwhelming. It felt like she would belong somewhere again. Just the thought of it sent her to the brink of tears.

                “Really?” she asked, her voice cracking.

                Dongwan smiled. “Really.”

                Heeyeon bit her lips, trying not to show how broad her smile could get. But then, she took a glance at her son and realized, it is a big decision to make for both of them. So she had to tell herself not to rush anything. “Can you give me some time to think about it?” she asked the alpha leader and his luna.

                “Of course,” Dongwan said. “We’ll welcome you whenever you’re ready.”

                Yongguk’s phone rang in the middle of their playtime. He quickly took it out of his pocket to look at the caller. “It’s work. I need to take this,” he told Daehyun.

                “Okay,” Daehyun replied and listened to Yongguk getting up from the carpeted floor, probably going to a quieter place.

                He diverted his focus to Yohan again, who was sitting very close in front of him. “Where’s the dog?” he asked in an excited, high pitched voice.

                Yohan immediately ran his eyes over all the animal figures on the floor around him, before picking up one of them. “It’s here!” he turned his back and showed it to Daehyun.

                “How does it sound like?” Daehyun asked again.

                “Woof! Woof!”

                “Good!” Daehyun clapped his hands. “Where’s the cat?”

                Yohan put down the previous one and picked up another. “It’s here!”

                “How does it sound like?”

                “Meow meow!”

                “That’s right!” Daehyun reached out towards the boy from behind and moved his hand from the small back up to the head to ruffle Yohan’s hair.

                “Uncle Dae, what is this?” Yohan asked.

                “Hm?” Daehyun was not expecting that. “What is it?” He opened his palm in front of the boy, not knowing that the boy was already holding up the figure. Anyhow, Yohan still put it in his hand.

                “Let’s see…” Daehyun muttered while feeling for every part of the toy. He couldn’t make anything out of it except for its head, body, legs and tail.

                “Uhh… could it be… a cow?” He decided to take a guess in a playful manner.

                “Nooo this is cow!” Yohan picked up its figure and showed it to Daehyun.

                “Could it be… a horse?” Daehyun tried his luck again.

                “But this is horse!” Yohan showed the said figure to Daehyun, closer to his face this time when Daehyun didn’t seem to really look at it.

                Daehyun’s heart clenched after getting it wrong again and not being able to tell the boy such a simple thing of what animal it is. Yohan must be so disappointed in him and thought that it wasn’t fun enough to play with him. Despite that, Daehyun remained calm. “Hmm… how many legs does it have?” he asked curiously.

                “Uh…” Yohan took a closer look at the figure in Daehyun’s hold before starting to count them by pointing his finger at each of the legs. “One… two…three… four!”

                “That’s right! Good job!” Daehyun cheered for the boy before asking him again. “Then, what colour is it?”

                “Um…” Yohan scratched his head, didn’t really know what colour it is exactly. Then, he looked around until something with the same colour caught his eyes. “Same as my pants!”

                Daehyun gasped. “Really? Wow!” He was actually running out of ideas to keep the boy entertained and just wished for Yongguk to return already.

                Right at that moment, he caught a shuffling sound and someone’s scent nearing, but it was not Yongguk’s. The person came straight towards him and sat at his side. Then, there was something pressed around his ear before he was being whispered.

                “It’s a donkey,” Heeyeon told him quietly.

                Daehyun couldn’t move a muscle, surprised and confused by that random whisper. It was seconds later that he realized Heeyeon was referring to the figure in his hand.

                Daehyun cleared his throat before calling the boy. “Yohan-ah, here you go.” He handed the figure back to the boy. “It’s a donkey and it goes hee-haw!”

                “Hee-haw!” Yohan repeated loudly with the figure held up high above his head, making Daehyun smile in relief.

                “Where’s Yongguk oppa?” Heeyeon asked.

                “He’s on the phone somewhere,” Daehyun answered. “Where are Uncle Dongwan and Aunt Minjee?”

                “They went to prepare some tea,” Heeyeon said. “I’m sorry for troubling you with Yohan.”

                The said boy had started playing by himself after his mother came, knowing very well that he couldn’t interrupt when the elders are talking.

                “Not at all,” Daehyun quickly denied. “He’s a really good boy. I’m the one who almost lied to him about the donkey,” he said with a small laugh. “Good thing you came.”

                It was the first time for Heeyeon to see Daehyun’s genuine smile at her and she finally understood why a mere human like him could be a weredragon’s mate. He really had the smile that could melt anyone’s heart. “Nah, I’m sure you could’ve figure it out if you’re given more time,” she said in return.

                “…no, not really.” Daehyun muttered before breathing out a quiet laugh. “I don’t even know what most animals look like, so I was just asking him this and that to drag the time.”

                The smile was still on Daehyun’s face, but Heeyeon could see the way it faded a little. She suddenly felt a pang of guilt, because even if Daehyun couldn’t do the most, he was still willing to entertain the boy, not minding that the boy was the son of someone who had crashed into his life and almost screwing it up.

                So after heaving a deep breath, Heeyeon braved herself to speak up. “Daehyun…?” she started, gaining all of the man’s attention. “I… wanted to apologize… for everything that I’ve done before... I must’ve hurt your feelings. From the bottom of my heart, I’m really sorry.”

                For a moment there, Daehyun was rendered speechless. He had always known how straightforward Heeyeon could be, but for her to admit her mistakes, she really had the courage and it made him admire her for that.

                “You’ve gone through a lot too,” Daehyun said. “I can’t imagine putting myself in your shoes. Raising a child on your own, it must be hard.”

                Heeyeon’s gaze diverted to her son. One could only imagine the rough times they had been through, but she managed to hang in there, with her son being the source of her strength.

                She looked at Daehyun again with raised eyebrows. “But do you forgive me?”

                Daehyun chuckled. “Of course I forgive you.”

                Heeyeon’s lips were pulled into a wide smile. “Thank you,” she muttered before throwing her arms around the man.

                The hug startled Daehyun at first, but he eventually returned it, placing his hands on the woman’s back.

                It was not long until they were interrupted, or more accurately, joined by another party. Heeyeon backed away at the feeling of something being wedged in between her and Daehyun. Amused laughter escaped her lips at the sight of Yohan plastered against Daehyun’s belly.

                “Aww… Does Yohan like hugs?” Daehyun cooed at the boy while his arms were squeezing the little body, earning a loud cackle from the said kid.

                “He seems to like you a lot,” Heeyeon commented because it was rare for him to do that to someone he just met.

                “It’s probably just because I smell like you,” assumed Daehyun.

                “No way,” Heeyeon quickly dismissed it. “Because Aunt Minjee said the other kids love you too.”

                Daehyun let out a soft laugh, finally accepting the fact. “Maybe because I know how to deal with them. Most of my students are still kids too,” he figured, now having an arm wrapped around Yohan as the boy returned to playing with the toys while leaning against his side.

                It raises Heeyeon’s eyebrows. “Oh, so you’re a teacher?”

                “I’m just a piano teacher at a studio,” Daehyun replied before adding, “Yongguk  hyung told me to take a leave for a while, until it is safe enough for me to go outside on my own.”

                Well, he almost went back to work the other day if the Massifs didn’t make a surprise visit at the clan’s house. After that, Yongguk insisted for him to stay with the clan until they are very sure the rouges really left the town.

                “Safe enough?” Heeyeon’s face contorted with confusion. “What do you mean?”

                Daehyun’s lips were tightly pressed as he drew a deep breath. The traumatizing event sent shivers down his spine.

                “A clan of rogues had attacked me before,” he muttered.

                Heeyeon gasped. “There are a clan of rogues here?!”

                “Yeah...” Daehyun didn’t expect the woman to be that surprised. He thought that every weredragon would’ve known about something like that on their own.

                “What happened?” Heeyeon asked desperately.

                “Well, they tried to abduct me, to make me their…slave.” The last part of Daehyun’s sentence almost came out inaudible.

                “That’s terrible!” Heeyeon uttered in disbelief.

                “But luckily, the Empyreans managed to stop them both of the times,” Daehyun finished it off with a thin smile.

                “Both times?!” Heeyeon stared at Daehyun with bulging eyes. “They attacked you twice?!”

                “They are far more dangerous than you imagine,” Yongguk cut in while walking towards them, making the woman turned to look at him. “They robbed, they , they sold. They had even murdered a lot of people,” he told Heeyeon before leaning against the closest wall with a sigh.

                “That’s why my clan watch over the town every night. And it pisses them off. So they threatened to kill me…” his voice trailed off as his gaze slowly dropped to the floor, but then he looked up at Heeyeon again from under his lashes. “... and they really did it to my brother…”

                Heeyeon’s face completely changed at that. “…what…?” she breathed out, alternating her stare between Yongguk and Daehyun, who wore the same apologetic expression. Sudden chills ran throughout her body. “They did what to your brother?” she asked the young alpha properly this time.

                Yongguk glanced at his mate. Daehyun already had a thin reassuring smile on his face even if the said man couldn’t see him. And that was all he needed to gather his courage.

                “I guess you should know about this sooner or later,” he said before heaving a deep breath. “Your mate didn’t die from a car accident.”

The blood left Heeyeon’s face, turning it as white as a ghost. Meanwhile, there was only silence for Daehyun. He tried his best to play with Yohan although his ears were listening.

                After taking a seat on the sofa, Yongguk started telling Heeyeon the whole story about Yongnam’s death, just like what he did to Daehyun. He knew Heeyeon’s stare was fixed on him, but he couldn’t bring himself to meet her eyes. Only when there was nothing more to tell, he finally looked up at her. The sight broke his heart.

                The tears were flooding out of her eyes despite her silence. Her face contorted with genuine pain even if she tried not to show it.

                Yongguk averted his gaze down again. “I’m sorry…” he muttered, as desperate as it might sound like.

                “I need some time… to take it all in,” Heeyeon sobbed. “Come, Yohan. We’re going home.” She quickly grabbed the boy into her arms, ignoring his cries and protests. He just wasn’t ready to leave yet.

                Heeyeon got up to her feet, taking her belongings and Yohan’s stuffed dragon toy on the couch before making her way out of there. Right after the main door was closed, Yongguk palmed his face with a long heavy sigh.

                Hearing the faint sound coming from his lover, Daehyun got up onto his knees and felt around the sofa, hastily wanting to find the man while trying not to crush the toys scattered there. After a few clumsy stumbles, he reached Yongguk and immediately climbed to his side before pulling him into a hug.

                Yongguk slid his hands to Daehyun’s back, squeezing the smaller body as if Daehyun wasn’t already close enough to him. His face nuzzled Daehyun’s neck, inhaling his favourite scent. Only then he could feel assured that everything is going to be alright. His mate is his main source of strength indeed.