“It’s been a month,” Jooheon pouts, squinting his eyes accusingly towards the wooden cabin in the distance. He huffs out a breath, readjusting his position on the branch. He shifts about, moving until he hangs upside down with only his legs—and powerful thighs—gripping the rough bark. Hyungwon picks at his nails, entirely nonplussed by his dongsaeng’s whining.

“Just how can someone stay in a house for a whole month straight???” the younger goes on to say.

“You know humans these days,” Hyungwon sighs, shaking his cherry blossom hair out from his stormy-grey eyes. “If you give them enough food, they can stay somewhere for years without going outside…” His shoulders deflate as he thinks of how different things were just four centuries ago. Humans used to worship the ground he walked on, but now he’d be lucky if he even got a second glance from all these nonbelievers.

But, this human is different…

 

Hyungwon and Jooheon have seen him, just once. He’d been moving into the cabin that day, and he’d looked quite delectable to the two immortal beings as they watched curiously from their trees. They’d heard the other humans around him talking, whispering to each other about how he’s some writer whose big in the fantasy industry. Granted, neither had fully understood what was being said, but they got the gist.

Fantasy is what other humans called their kind, and this… Im Changkyun was someone who worked with fantasy things. So, surely that meant he believed in them, right? Right!

… It definitely helps that this Changkyun man had looked absolutely beautiful, his dark hair stuck to his head due to all the sweat that had seeped through his pores.

 

So, here they’ve been since Changkyun’s arrival, just waiting for the man to come into their territory so they can finally make contact. It’ll be wonderful when it finally happens, utterly magical. A human who actually believes in them, knows what they are, is worth waiting a thousand lifetimes for. The energy alone he could get off a human like that is a delicacy. Much less the kind of energy when he’s a bit… aroused~

Hyungwon pokes out his lower lip in a pout, readjusting his own position on the branch until his front is pressed against the coarse wood. He swings his legs to and fro in the air, wistfully staring off towards the cabin. He’s sure Changkyun will come out eventually…

 

Changkyun sits back in his chair with a groan. He stares at his stupid computer screen for the umpteenth time that stupid day. It’s blank save for the cursor and the proclamation that this is the thirty-seventh chapter in his up-and-coming novel. That is, up-and-coming if he can ever finish the damn thing.

He’s already missed three deadlines, but his editor overlooks it due to his previous success. He’s gotta say, he’s made quite the name for himself in the literary world. Hell, he could stop writing now and still live comfortably off the royalties from all he’s sold in the past.

But, he won’t do that to himself or his fans. He loves writing, usually, and it’s enabled him a great life in which he gets to go out and meet so many different people. He gets to hear all these wonderful stories about how his stories have helped complete strangers through difficult times, have brought such strangers together and made lifelong friends out of each other.

He writes about magical adventures and impossible tales, but, truly, the real magic is seeing what profound differences his works make in the lives of people he’s never met…

Woah. That’s a damn good line.

Changkyun quickly moves to scribble it down, knowing he should use it for the speech he’ll have to make at his next release party… That is, if he ever has another release party…

GOD, get it together, Im, he chastises himself. He sits back up, his fingers hovering above the keys as he stares with renewed determination at the blank screen before him. Renewed determination that deflates, mind you, after only another thirty seconds.

Changkyun groans again in dismay, leaning forward to repeatedly hit his forehead against the smooth table. The whole point of coming to this god-forsaken cabin was to get his writing juices flowing while also cutting out any and all distractions!! But, he’s been stuck in this cabin for a month without any results…

His head flops over onto the left side, a pout pulling at his lips as he presses his scarred cheek to the cool, fake wood. He stares out at the window, emotionless. Maybe going outside would help? After all, he’s writing about elves, and elves are supposed to live in forests and… you know… nature-ey places like this. Maybe fully immersing himself into the tree-laden landscape of a strange forest would help him write.

He stands with a sigh, figuring it’s worth a shot. What’s the point of going on a retreat where you just stay inside all day, anyway? Inspiration could hit him like a ton of bricks out there, but he’d never know it if he didn’t at least try.

 

After sending an albeit mysterious message to his friends back home—one of those “don’t worry, but if you don’t hear from me by the end of next week send a search party, I may be dead” that would send Minhyuk and Kihyun into a frenzy kind of messages —, Changkyun gets together a bag of supplies and leaves the safety of his cabin behind. He spares it only one last look as he trudges off towards the beautifully mysterious tree line. The man smiles to himself, ready for the inspiration to wash over him.

 

“H-Hyungwonnie!!!”

Rough hands shake Hyungwon from his light slumber, and he cracks his eyes open with a disgruntled groan. He looks over to Jooheon, who backs away as he throws his hands up in silent apology, unable to fight off his own nervous chuckle at the glare. The younger points an index finger towards the mortal’s abode, and Hyungwon instinctively looks in delayed curiosity.

He bolts up, suddenly very much awake. His eyes widen, growing at least three times in size.

Im Changkyun, the one mortal they have even a chance at reaching, is walking out of his cabin… and right in their direction.

“Jooheonney!!!!” Hyungwon excitedly whispers, turning to shake Jooheon by the shoulders. “Jooheonney, look!!!” He releases the younger and scoots further out onto the branch, the wood growing less round as the more he scoots. Jooheon laughs breathily behind him.

“Yeah,” Jooheon says, slightly amused, “I know…” He tilts his head as he watches the older from behind, fascinated at seeing him so animated. It’s been a handful of centuries since Hyungwon’s been this invested in something. It’s a refreshing change from his typically blasé attitude about the everyday goings-on of their lives in the fae courts. Hyungwon whirls about to look at Jooheon, a gummy smile on his face. However, he turns a bit too fast, and it’s just at that moment a strong gust of wind blows passed them.

It knocks the paper doll of a being off the branch. He doesn’t even have time to flail before tumbling down through the branches, landing flat on his stomach on one much closer to the grassy floor of the forest with a loud ‘oof’.

Hyungwon groans as he stirs against the only thing hovering between himself and the ground.

“… You okay?”

Jooheon’s leaning to the side of his own branch, kneading his lower lip between his teeth worriedly. It isn’t as if that fall—or any fall, for that matter—would actually kill either of them. But, it could be a pain to heal from.

The small grunt of acknowledgment from beneath tells him Hyungwon’s fine, just annoyed. He laughs breathily, shaking his head fondly. He scoots down to the place where the fat branch meets the even fatter trunk, hugging the tree tightly as he swings himself onto it. He then begins to shimmy down, cautiously watching for footholds to make sure he doesn’t make quite as dramatic an exit from their lookout.

 

Changkyun’s stomping away from the cabin with a determined crinkle in his brow when he smells it. It’s faint, carried to him on the warm spring winds. It causes him to pause, his own feet halting mid-step in surprise.

The slightest hint of bitter-sweet cherry blossoms floats up into his nose, the most intriguing of aromas tickling his senses.

It beckons him forward, and he answers the call in a confused stumble.

Surely there couldn’t be cherry blossom trees here, right? He didn’t think this to be the right region for them… But, the smell had been unmistakable…

Changkyun can’t help but smirk, quickening his pace as he ventures forward. Flashes of cherry blossom nymphs beckoning a lone hero forward in his current novel fill his mind… This is already proving to be such a good idea! He hasn’t even gone a full five feet away from his cabin, and he’s already getting so inspired!! He’ll be sure to write it down when he stops to make camp for the night.

For the meantime, he’ll wander around and plot his story. He blazes on with a bright smile and a shove of his black bangs from his face, knowing for sure now this had been the answer to his writer’s block he’d been searching for.

 

For hours, the man meanders through the forest. His mind alternates between telling awful puns (man, those trees sure are out-standing!! HAH), plotting out his novel (okay, so we’re getting to the … what would the boy do now?), and trying to keep track of where he’s going (was it that tree I made a joke about earlier? Or that one, maybe?).

By the time the sun is setting, casting a scarlet hue through the trees, Changkyun is sufficiently lost. But, he decides to worry about that tomorrow. For now, he’s hungry, tired, and intolerably sweaty. He stops for the day, slinging down his pack and pulling out the pop-up tent inside.

He huffs out a breath, thinking of all the times he should’ve paid attention to when his father had asked for his help putting up the tent when his f smoky had gone camping. Shrugging off his oversized plaid shirt he’d been using for a jacket, he moves to make a clear space for the structure.

 

Unbeknownst to him, two immortal beings are peering at him from behind the trees. They’d been watching all day, listening to him mutter to himself.

“Sure he isn’t crazy, hyung?” Jooheon asks for the umpteenth time as Changkyun mutters to himself. “I mean, back in the day, if a human talked to himself he’d be sent to the clinic…” Hyungwon turns to glare at the younger, his full lips puckered into a pout.

“He’s not crazy,” he defends. “Who else is he supposed to talk to? Us? He doesn’t know we’re here!”

“Then maybe we should show him…”

“Yeah, that’d work out great,” the taller responds as he rolls his eyes to turn back to watch the fascinating human play with a pile of fabric and pokey… wire… things. “’Hi, we’ve been following you all day and couldn’t help but notice you seemed lonely. Want some company?’ He’d freak out.”

“We don’t have to tell him we’ve been following him,” Jooheon points out, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “We could just… pose as mortals, too, or something. Or just act like we stumbled across him randomly. He doesn’t know what’s out here. It’s believable."

Hyungwon snorts in disbelief, rolling his eyes as he turns to continue to watch the human. Poor Jooheonney is so trusting sometimes, it reminds Hyungwon of how much younger he is than himself—at least half a century.

He hasn’t experienced what could happen if a human doesn’t believe and thinks they’re some loon, or even worse, a fanatic that does believe… Not that Hyungwon thinks Changkyun would do anything to hurt them, not really. After all, he’s a true believer! He writes about their kind and tells others just how they really are!

But, that doesn’t mean they can just reveal themselves so easily. Even the most heartfelt believers could freak out—if they’re sane… So, they need to be practical about this.

 

The sun has set, and Changkyun is left to sit, staring motionless at the crackling fire he’d managed to make in the middle of this convenient clearing free of trees and plants that he’s used to set up camp for the night. A protein bar is stuck between his lips, his brow creased in thought. He sips on a bottle of red wine as he tries to think. He’s written down everything he’d come up with today, and now all he has to do is just figure out how to fit it into his novel…

Trouble is, there’s absolutely no way to do so logically. These are the makings of a completely new story!! Which is great, in some ways. At least he’s managed to write something today, he supposes. Now, if it could only be the right thing, he could give some good news to his editor.

He’s just about to toss the pad and paper aside for the night and lie down to stare are the stars for a while (because what’s more inspiring than staring up at the twinkling stars? Nothing, to Changkyun) when there’s a rustling behind him.

Now, normally he wouldn’t be bothered by something so insignificant. But, since he’s gone all day without coming across any nature life, he can’t help but be a smidgen intrigued. He quickly turns around, eyes narrowed to discern shape from shadow. Of course, he’s had more than a bit of that wine, so he isn’t terribly successful.

After staring for ten tense moments, nothing decides to make itself known. No owls, no deer… not even a damn squirrel.

But, he can’t shake the feeling that there’s something there. Just a faint whisper in the back of his mind, a voice throughout his young life he’s come to trust. It led him to his first publishing contact, the best literary agent he could ever hope for.

“… Hello?” he calls, immediately regretting it. He recalls every scene in every horror movie he’s ever seen where the serial killer or demon or vampire or whatever suddenly pops up from around the corner all because the stupid main character decides to politely say ‘hello’ instead of getting out of there as fast as they can…

When only the faint popping of the fire answers him, he stands. He grabs for his flashlight and walks over to the brush, glaring stoically into the bushes and trees. He pushes some leaves back with his foot, huffing out a breath when there’s nothing there, nothing but a few scattered leaves of pink and white. Maybe he had just let his mind get ahead of him, after all. It wouldn’t be the first time.

He frowns in disappointment as he goes back to his spot near the fire. He silently nags himself, saying to just allow himself to relax for once.

That is, until there’s more rustling at the opposite side of the clearing...

Changkyun quickly shines his flashlight to the spot where he’s sure he’s just seen leaves move in the bush.

“I know you’re there,” he says, though he isn’t entirely too sure just what or who he’s speaking to. Or if they’re even there or if his mind isn’t just playing tricks on him.

But, then, from out of the shadows materializes this... utterly beautiful creature who practically steals Changkyun’s breath away. He feels his jaw drop, and he knows he’s staring, but he just doesn’t care. Life is too short to be worried about being rude when face with such an obvious piece of Heaven.

A man, taller than Changkyun, with pale pink hair and tan skin is standing over him. His brown eyes are unwavering as they regard him, and the writer can’t help but shift nervously on his feet. Despite his beautiful face and form, the thin stranger is wearing rags for clothes...

An unearthly smile suddenly spills over the man’s handsome features, and Changkyun feels his heart melt.

He’s always been such a er for a pretty face.

“Thank God...” the stranger breathes out, sounding impossibly relieved. Changkyun remains silent as the man turns away, bringing a slender hand up to the right side of those plump lips. “Heonney!! Come here, I found someone!” He then returns his gaze to the shorter, stepping forward and taking his hands and shaking them vigorously. “You have no idea how long we’ve been looking for someone.”

Changkyun grows even more curious when a second man, this one closer to his own height, steps from the trees. His hair is a light blonde, and his arms are toned and muscular. He squints his small eyes in Changkyun’s direction before smiling so wide dimples appear on his cheeks.

“We’ve been wandering around for days!” he cries, pushing the taller one out of the way. He begins to shake Changkyun’s hands with even more strength than the first man.

“We got attacked by some crazed cat thing,” the taller explains. “It chased us away from our camp, and we’ve been lost ever since… It probably had rabies” Changkyun gulps thickly.

“Um… crazed cat thing?” is all Changkyun can think to say, at a loss as to what to do. He went on this stupid retreat in the first place to get away from distracting people, but now here these two gorgeous men are needing Changkyun to save them from certain death??? (Granted, that’s not really what they’d said, but it’s how the novelist will choose to interpret it.)

“Yeah, we didn’t really get a good look at it,” the second man explains, chuckling nervously. He and his friend share a glance, as if silently asking each other if they really ought to stick around. The apprehension is like a physical presence behind them, and Changkyun sees these two impossible men walking out of his life to probably starve to death.

What kind of person would he be if he turned such helpless, handsome men away?

“Sit down,” Changkyun says, stepping away and gesturing towards the fire. “You’ve probably been walking around for a while... Tomorrow I can get y’all to my cabin and we can try and get into contact with your family.”

“Thank you,” the taller says, smiling with the air of a prince. He takes a seat with the other following his example on his left, leaving a spot just big enough for Changkyun to sit between them. “But, our family is pretty… off the grid. Having a rest is enough help.” Changkyun frowns at this, though he doesn’t question it. He doesn’t want to seem rude, after all.

“Do you need something to eat?” he offers instead, reaching into his pack for more protein bars. He’s always been one to overpack, so he’s sure he has plenty to go around. The strangers take the foil-wrapped bars in obvious confusion as Changkyun takes his seat. The shorter holds it up right in front of his eyes, pouting thoughtfully. The pink-haired man sets it down on the dirt ground before turning his gaze to Changkyun.

“You’re very kind,” the taller says, brushing his hair back behind a… strangely pointed ear. Changkyun can’t help but stare at it, tilting his head as he takes in the curved backside which dips into the pointed end. It’s… odd, yet kind of familiar?

“I’m Hyungwon, and this is Jooheon,” the man goes on to say, seemingly oblivious to Changkyun’s thoughts.

“I’m Changkyun,” he replies, his voice a bit subdued. He tears his eyes away from the ear to look into his eyes… and he finds it hard to breathe again. Such… indescribable light in those brown orbs, the likes of which Changkyun has never seen before. It’s truly otherworldly.

“You… look familiar, Changkyun,” Hyungwon says, leaning closer. Jooheon silently mirrors his actions, and Changkyun can almost feel his breath against his neck. But, he doesn’t move away. For some reason, the thought doesn’t even occur to him. He’s glued to the spot, pinned down by Hyungwon’s piercing gaze.

“I-I’m a writer,” Changkyun offers, shrugging a single shoulder as he turns to retrieve his wine. “Maybe you’ve seen my picture on a book or something?” Hyungwon’s eyes light up, and it’s as if Changkyun’s looking at the stars themselves. He thickly takes a sip to try and erase the infatuated thought from his mind.

“That’s it!” Hyungwon cries, clapping his hands together once. “You’re a fantasy writer, aren’t you? Jooheonney and I love fantasy. You can kind of say that it’s… our lives.” Jooheon snorts on Changkyun’s other side, and the man in the middle gulps thickly.

What is this? Some weird, staged meeting by creepy fanatics? Or just a chance meeting with fans? Usually, when people use that line, Changkyun gets the hell outta dodge as fast as humanly possible. But, for some reason, he can’t find it in himself to leave.

… He’ll just blame it on the booze.

“Been our lives for a long time,” Jooheon chimes in. Changkyun glances over at him as he tears into the foil and bites into the protein bar. His face contorts into an expression of disgust, and he immediately turns to spit it out. Changkyun can’t help but laugh, smiling fondly as Jooheon turns to him with an adorable little pout that somehow immediately dissipates all suspicions in Changkyun’s mind. “That tastes like cardboard,” he whines, moving to latch onto Changkyun’s arm.

Changkyun pats his head in silent apology and turns back to Hyungwon. He doesn’t mind this virtual stranger clinging to him, for some unknown reason. He only ever lets Minhyuk and Kihyun act like this back at home…

“Do you… wanna know a secret, Changkyun~?” Hyungwon asks, scooting closer. He’s pressed up against Changkyun now, sufficiently squishing him against Jooheon. His long fingers come up and drift over Changkyun’s thigh. He should push them away. He should demand to know just what the hell they’re playing at.

But, he can’t. Changkyun can feel heat flooding off his own body. It’s been so long since he’s been touched like this, much less by someone so entirely godly.

Changkyun nods, almost as if in a daze. He has no idea just where this conversation is heading, but he knows one thing for sure as Hyungwon leans in with those beautifully plump lips pulled back in a smirk.

It isn’t only the wine that keeps him from pulling away, or putting a stop to anything else that happens that night.