finals are done.

i think i passed

that means i have a diiploma

but im still taking 6 classes next semester

and you guys only get one chapter this week

     They passed the living room Sejun, Minji, Yixing and Minseok’s parents were watching a movie. “Where did Luhan go?” Minseok asked.

    “He turned red, insisted he had to be somewhere else and disappeared.” Yixing replied with a smirk, knowing exactly why.

    They disappeared into the kitchen and Luhan appeared in front of them.

    “How was it?” There was something in Luhan's voice they couldnt read. Minseok smiled sheepishly.

    “Sorry we didn’t call you in… It was kinda spontaneous.” Minseok replied with a blush.

    “That didn’t answer my question.” He crossed his arms, shifting his weight to one leg and tilting his head to the side.

     “You have to see for yourself,” He smirked, stalkign closer, “I actually want to watch you fall apart under him…" He breathed the words into luhan's ear, " that would be hot.” His voice dropped in pitch. He looked into Luhan’s eyes as he said it.

    “I wonder if you were always this insatiable before we met.” Luhan mused. He tried his best to look unruffled.

    “The three guys in the candle room and Minji seemed to think I may have been aual.” He replied.

     “Candle room?” Sehun asked.

    “The room with everyone’s lights. Even Sehun and my candles were there. They were in a special place though.”

    “What colour were the flames?”

    “Mine was black. Sehun’s was still greyish.”

    “Did they tell you when you had to go with me?”

    “The guy with the neat orangish hair said a lifetime, but it’d probably be better if we moved away before someone noticed that we weren’t aging.”

    “So… that gives us like ten years at least.” Sehun said brightly. “I can finish school!”

    “Good for you.” Minseok drawled flatly. “But what am I going to do? Go back to being a barista? I won’t even remember what I’m doing.”

    Luhan thought for a moment. “I might have an idea … I need to see if you can do a bit of … cleanup. Help me with my workload so to speak.”

    “As long as I have food and a place to stay.” He said, Luhan frowned.

“I gotta think about this more …”

    They grabbed a ton of food from the fridge and went to the living room to watch TV.

    “Whatcha watching?” Minseok asked through a mouthful of cold buffalo chicken.

    “Some ghost hunting show.” Minji replied vacantly, turning away from the tv only long enough to steal food from Minseok's plate.

    “That’s it!” Luhan shouted. “That’s how you can stay fed and housed!”

    “I’m all ears.” The small man said before nibbling on a baby carrot.

    “Ghost hunter. You’d be doing my job and people would be paying you for it.” He grinned, “Sehun can help when he’s on breaks from school if he wants.”

    Luhan went to Minseok’s computer and did something. He came back with a sly smile. “What did you do?” Minseok asked with a raised eyebrow. He wasn't sure he should trust the look on the redhead's face.

    “Getting your name out there. Now we need to make sure you can do this right.” He pulled Minseok and Sehun toward the front door. “You coming Xingie?” Luhan asked.

    “Sure … why not.” He shrugged and followed them.

    A short while later they found themselves in an alleyway. Minseok looked at one end and saw a man who looked almost like him but was transparent. “What the hell?” Minseok blurted.

    “Are you talking about the fuzzy outline of a person at that end?” Sehun asked, gesturing with his nose.

    “Fuzzy nothing. He looks like me. I mean just like me.” Minseok looked at Luhan. “Was he the reason why I … died?”

    Luhan nodded, “So even if you can’t get him to let go of his candle, you can beat him up for catharsis' sake.”  He shrugged.

    Minseok walked up to the cowering spectre, ‘You look like me … were you the other guy he was laughing about?’

    “Yeah …” Minseok frowned.

    ‘I’m sorry. I think that’s why I stuck around. If I could find you I’d apologise for getting you into that .’

    “What’s done is done” Minseok said. I’m sorry you had to go through the same thing as me.” He said as he recognized the bruises all over him and the blood that ran down his legs. “Ready to go?” Minseok asked. His eyes clouded black when the ghost took his hand. A door opened and the ghost walked through, leaving Minseok behind.

    Luhan frowned as he walked up to Minseok. “You’re going to need sunglasses or something before you start working, the eye thing is too noticeable. But-”, He smiled “Good job” He kissed him on the cheek.

    “Training done?” Yixing asked.

    “Since Sehun can’t see them clear enough yet, yes” Luhan said, “Why?”

    “I’m going to check how Minseok is doing, maybe take out his stitches, then I have to go. My number is in your speed dial because you’re a jeopardy friendly, accident prone mess.” He smiled at the small man.

    “Uh … thanks?” Minseok said.

    They got to Minseok’s house and Yixing made the small man sit on the floor with his arms on the coffee table. Sehun and Luhan went into Minseok’s room to talk.

    “You checking to see if his stitches are infected or something?” Minji asked.

    “Or something.” Yixing replied flatly. “Is it ok to let her see you like this, Min?”

    “Pretty sure she won’t say anything.” Minseok smiled. “I trust her.”

    “And Sejun?” Yixing eyed the tall man warily.

    “I’m sure Sehun wouldn’t have brought him over if he didn’t think we could trust him.”

    “Thanks …” Sejun replied. “Where is my brother by the way?”

    Minseok bit his upper arm really hard to muffle a moan. “He’s in my room with L– Luhan …” His cheeks turned pink.

    “I’ll keep your mind off of that.” Yixing smirked as he pulled out some scissors. “Sejun, could you hold his arm still, he’s shaking too much for me to do this properly.”

    “Why are you shaking, oppa? Is it withdrawals?” Minji asked innocently.

    “Not withdrawals. I’m past those-" His breath hitched, "This is- s- something else. Different.” He mumbled into his bicep. “ing ow!” He shouted in a voice deeper and more masculine than anyone there had ever heard as Yixing had pulled out the first stitch.

    “What are you doing?” Minji asked, certain that Minseok’s wrists were still open wounds.

    Yixing pulled the next stitch. Minseok bit his upper arm hard enough to bleed “Do you want an anaesthetic you big sissy? Cut that out!” He dug into his bag for a bandage and a preloaded syringe.

    He injected Minseok’s arm with the syringe and put a flower printed bandage on his bicep. By the time the bandage was on, Minseok had slumped forward. He looked completely knocked out. He wasn’t even breathing.

    “Don’t let go of his arm.” Yixing told Sejun. He pulled the next stitch and Minseok’s head snapped up.

    “Ow” He whined groggily. “This hurts.”

    “And now we know that you can stay conscious even when injected by something designed to take out an average sized black bear.” Minseok frowned at him, but looked confused at the same time. “Though you don’t have most of your cognitive faculties.”

    Minseok  lolled his head back and forth lethargically looking at the people around him. “I know you.” He smiled at Sejun. “Your brother has an amazing .” He smiled broadly but his eyes looked incredibly tired. “Right now he’s got Luhan’s OWWWWW what was that for?”

    Yixing pulled that stitch particularly hard. “He doesn’t want to know what his brother is doing right now.”

    “I think you anes- an- a … numbed them up too … they can hardly move.” He chuckled with a big, loopy grin.

    “I think it’s a proximity thing.” Yixing replied. “Farther away from each other the less you can feel each other. Maybe it’s for the best you three are going your separate ways.”

    “But I’mma miss em.” Minseok pouted. “What’m I gonna do without em?” He wibbled.

    “You’re gonna be a ghost hunter.” Yixing replied patiently.

    “Oh right- ow- Do you think I’ll be able to survive off of that?” The small man asked.

    “I think you’ll be ok. Luhan put up an ad for you.”

    “My arms aren't all gross …” He said, distracted by the pain in his arm.

    “You heal quickly.” Yixing said, “Even for a dead man.”

    “M’not dead … I was … not anymore … I don’t want to be dead again. M’glad I don’t need to do it again.” Minseok pouted cutely.

    “And there went the last one. Let the anesthetic work its way out of his system and ignore any noises coming from Minseok’s room. Don’t let him join them. He needs to rest for the rest of the night. And don’t let him try to go anywhere. Also don’t freak out if he does anything weird.” Yixing informed the other two as he made a pair of bandages with gauze and medical tape, “He can take these off in like... an hour or two.” Yixing said as he gathered his things.

    He bid his farewells and told them to tell the other two he was leaving when they came out.

    Minseok looked up at his sister after Yixing left. He twisted his upper body so he could see her. “Jiji … m’sorry if I- ing, but can I use your lap fr a pillow?”

    “Yeah, come up here, the couch is more comfortable.” She looked up at the other man, “Hey can you grab me a towel? He drools.”

    “I’mma miss you when I go away from you too Jiji … new job … weird.” He drifted off to sleep. Minji ran her fingers through his hair.

    “It’s softer than I remember.”

    “Did he call you Jiji when he could remember you?” Sejun asked.

    “Yeah,” She smiled. It was crooked and Sejun could see the family resemblance there. “Yeah he did.”

    About half an hour later, Minji (who was watching TV with Sejun) yelped when Minseok’s solid black eyes shot open and his back bowed violently while letting out a long moan and falling lax before closing his eyes again.

    “Minseokkie?” She poked one of his cheeks and he was breathing hard.

    “Hmm?” He looked up at his sister with a soft smile. The black was very slowly clearing from his eyes.

    “Are you ok?”

    “Amazing actually, why?” He sat up sounding nearly back to normal. Sejun was staring at him in concern as well, “Where’d Yixing go?”

    “He drugged you up pulled your stitches and left.” She picked up one of his hands and played with his fingers. He looked at their hands with a soft smile as he sat up. “Why are you better already? And why did your eyes do that?”

    “Do what?”

    “They went solid black,” Sejun said, “I could see it from over here.”

    “Side effect of being a blank slate after dying I guess.” He said absently, giving a one shoulder shrug.

    “And what was that thing?” His sister frowned.

    Minseok’s cheeks went bright red instantly. “I … uh …” His cheeks turned even more crimson.

    The bedroom door opened slightly and Luhan stuck his head out. his cheeks had colour to them, which was exceedingly rare for the psychopomp. “Min, we need to speak with you for a moment.”

    Minseok unsteadily walked in before anyone could stop him and he sat on his bed, looking at the two men clad only in boxers. Sehun had a serious look on his face. “He said he had something important to tell us.”

    “Well, I have to go back tomorrow.” Luhan said as he sat on the bed.

    “What?” Sehun asked.

    “Why?” Minseok added.

    “I have a job to do.” Luhan frowned. “I will be coming back once in a while to help you train Sehun though.

    “But what if we need you?” Minseok asked as he crawled on top of Luhan and shook him a few times. “You can’t leave us” He pouted. “Wait- why- how am I training Sehun?”

    “You will have experience as a ‘ghost hunter’ and I want you to check in on Sehun once in a while to see how well he is progressing. If his ability to see the dead is getting any better.”

    “But …”

    “Also I think you might be busy for a bit, getting your things from your old place to bring back here. You’ll need his help for that too.”

    “I hadn’t thought about that.” He said with his finger on his chin. “I think i still want to live with Hakyeon though.” He climbed into Luhan’s lap and rest his head on Luhan’s chest, using enough force to make the redhead lay down. Sehun curled up against their side. They all slowly drifted off to sleep like that.

    The next morning, Minseok and Sehun woke up tangled in each other’s limbs. There was a note pinned to the door.

‘Hey guys,             

You looked so cute sleeping like that. I didn’t have the heart to wake you.

My number is in your phones and I’ll pop by once in a while to see how you’re doing.

Don’t get into too much trouble and call Yixing if you notice anything about yourselves that you’re having a hard time explaining.

    See you around,

    Luhan’

    “That- that .”  Sehun growled as he crushed the letter in his hand.

    “Calm down. We have a busy day trying to find my apartment  and we can get upset at him later.” Minseok tried to calm Sehun down despite the little bubble of pain welling in his chest.

    “Fine- fine- just … I – “ Minseok cut him off with a soft kiss.

    “Things to do.” Sehun nodded dumbly.

    They went into the living room and there was a box on the coffee table with Minseok’s name on it.

    “Should we be worried?” Sehun asked.

    “I think we should open it in my room.” Minseok replied. “Just in case. I wouldn't put it past him to give us a box full of toys just so he can laugh about it later.”

    They brought the heavy box into the bedroom. Minseok opened it and inside was a messenger bag with a carbon monoxide detector, a tablet, a camera, a pair of sun glasses, flashlight, and a device that monitored sound waves. There was a note in one of the pockets.

    “These will come in handy in your new career as a ghost hunter.

I’ve left an explanation for why I’ve supplied them attached to each item

             Good luck. XOXO Luhan”

     He read out loud.

    “At least it wasn't toys.” Sehun shrugged.