The moon was captivating as it shone its light against the darkened backdrop filled with scattered pieces of silver dust sprinkled against the heavens to provide company on its lonely travels, it was forever destined to orbit the Earth chasing its lover until there could be a time when their lips would touch for a few brief moments before they were pulled back by the forces of the universe. For as long as he could remember Baekhyun had always been somwhat jealous of the moon, who sat by itself in a star-studded sky perfectly content with playing a seemingly endless game of cat and mouse. 

It wasn't until he remembered that he had been the one to create it, did things begin to make sense. Like the moon, he too spent time hasing after his lover only to recieve a few brief moments with him before their time together ran out and the cycle began all over again, being cursed certainly has a way of putting things into perspective. Especially since he knew that the time he had to spend with his lover was once again running out. 

Though he hated to admit it, Baekhyun had to accept the fact that Chanyeol was currently in a bad place. Rather than doing something selfish which could potentially force distance to come between them, Baekhyun decided that instead he would respect Chanyeol's wish for self-healing. His soulmate was terrified that the darkness residing within him would become too much for himk to bear and therefore he would be unable to control it. As Baekhyun had known him since they were young pups, he knew that if Chanyeol had lost control of his powers while Baekhyun was near him and he got caught in the cross-fire, Chanyeol would never be able to forgive himself for hurting the love of his life. 

At least his departure would only be temporary, just enough time for Chanyeol to come to terms with his previous decisions and allow him the solace to practise his power while also being away from those who may be harmed in the process. It was a sacrifice Baekhyun found himself admiring, though secretly loathed. No one could ever dream of their fated partner leaving them behind, because as Fate had proclaimed you were destined for each other therefore you shouldn't be without the other. 

But this is where Baekhyun disagrees. Of course he wants Chanyeol to remain by his side, he loves him and wishes to spend the rest of his life with him. But he also knows that his soulmate needs time to himself, to recharge, to be at peace with himself befgore he can find peace with Baekhyun. The vampire had grown up a lot this life-time, but Chanyeol who had been flooded with the reality of the life he would be returning to after having spent years in the dark - needed time to address that. And the best way he could do that, was alone. 

It wasn't like it would be forver, it would only be until Chanyeol felt comfortable in himself to allow himself to be by Baekhyun's side. His soulmate still had a lot of growing to do, but these growing pains needed to be felt alone and Baekhyun wouldn't be his soulmate without trusting him and staying by his side through everything just like Chanyeol had for him in his life's difficulties. 

"You're thinking too loud." The Alpha whispered into his ear, the ghost of his breath drawing goosebumps to the curve of the vampire's neck. Baekhyun's breath hitched in throat as he felt Chanyeol's plump lips dance across his pulse, his teeth gently nibbling on the skin just below his chin. "So many thoughts, so little to address them all." 

"I should report you for invasion of my privacy." Baekhyun huffed, daring to cross his arms against his chest though the limbs denied the first order and instead settled against Chanyeol's which had come to rest against his waist. "My thoughts are private, surely you must understand why I'm so cautious to keep them from you." 

"I understand why you're conflicted." He admitted, foregoing his biting to simply press his lips agaisnt the skin instead. "I'm asking quite a lot from you, I understand that. But you have understood that I need to do this myself, I want to be alone while I come to terms with everything beacuse I'm unsure of what will become of me if I'm not. I don't want you anywhere near me if something was to go wrong or if I can't control it, having fire as my power is already difficult. Now I'm adding a darkness which I have no knowledge about - surely you can see the pouring fuel on my fire methapor here." 

Baekhyun's shoulders shook as a giggle escaped his lips, the hands against his waist tightened ever so slightly pulling him flush against his soulmate's abdomen. "I get it," he admitted, turning his head so that he made eye-contact with the Alpha. "I'm not worried about you leaving... I'm worried that you might not come back." 

"Oh sweetheart..." Chanyeol whispered, gazing at him with sweet, tender eyes. "We haven't gotten our happy ending yet, I don't plan on going anywhere until I get that." 

"This isn't a Disney film Chanyeol, you're not some princess I have to save-" 

"No," the Alpha agreed, eyes twinkling with mischeif. "I'm not the princess in need of saving my love, you are. I'm like the Prince of the Forest in Bambi, I'm trying to do what's best for us in a messy situation." 

"Are you relating our love life to a film about a deer and his son?" Baekhyun deadpanned, turning around in his lover's arms. Chanyeol froze for a moment at the comment, his mind no doubt mulling the words over, before he nodded his head. 

"Yeah okay I definitely made a mistake with that one..." Baekhyun laughed. "But you get what I mean! Kind of." 

"I get it," Baekhyun hummed, standing up on his tip-toes to press his puckered lips against his soulmate's. Cahnyeol pouted when the vampire fell back onto his toes, seemingly having expected to have gotten a longer kiss for his efforts. Unsatisfied, he wrapped his arms around the boy's waist tighter, lifting him just a slight bit before colliding their lips back together again. 

The vampire let out a surprised squeal, the sound breathing through his nostrils since his mouth was otherwise occupied. His thin nimble fingers reached up to card through Chanyeol's locks, his fingertips curling through various strains and gently pulling on them in an attempt to bring his soulmate even closer though Chanyeol seemed reluctant to play into his game. The vampire pulled away, unsatisfied. 

"Can we not have some fun together..?" he whispered, lips ghosting over the Alphas'. Chanyeol's lips pulled back to reveal his grin, their foreheads coming into contact with one another a moment later. The vampire puffed out a breath of air, his eyes focusing on the muscles that had taken his breath away from the moment they touched. "We've been so busy with everything else, we haven't given enough time to ourselves just yet." 

"Are you asking me to give you my special attention?" Chanyeol teased, though his entire stance changed when he noticed Baekhyun's gentle nod. The vampire huffed in content, snuggling closer into his soulmate's chest. Once he found a comfortable position, he allowed his hands to fall from the Alpha's full head of hair, deciding instead to rest them against the taller's shoulders. "Baekhyun..." he choked out. "We're scheduled to return home soon, surely you don't expect us to do that now, right?" 

"Of course not!" he declined, forehead swiping against Chanyeol's collarbone. "I was hoping that once we get back to our old bedroom, you might entertain the thought-" 

"Smurfie..." Chanyeol sang, coaxing the vampire away from his body. In protest Baekhyun turned his head upwards, an anger-filled response on the tip of his tongue though the words faded into nothingness when he came to realise the soft gaze blinking back at him. "Whenever I am around you Baekhyun, I always entertain the thought. We've slept in the same bed for days now, of course that thought is going to be in my head. As King and Queen of EXO Planet we both know what it's like to put our work before our pleasure, I intend to cast aside this tradition once we've dealt with everything completely." 

"I love the sound of that." The vampire admitted, his lips pulling back into a content grin. "Once you deal with your powers and we find a way to stop Daehyun, the two of us are going to put ourselves in front of everything including our jobs as the crowned monarchy." 

"That's a deal I'm willing to make for our happiness." 

"Then let that be our happy ending." Baekhyun whispered, eyes twinkling. "Promise me that we will be able to experience that." 

Chanyeol's head tilted downward, the skin around his eyes crinkled as his face hardened into a serious expression. A shiver travelled up the vampire's spine when he noticed the blazing flames dancing the centre of his soulmate's eyes. "I promise you, that some time in the near future... we will have the opportunity to discard our duties and allow ourselves to be completely and utterly in love with one another. I plan on taking you on many adventures Byun Baekhyun, our story only begins now." 

And for some unknown reason -perhaps it was just the smoke screen of love completely blinding him of the harshness of reality - Baekhyun still found himself believingh in Chanyeol's sugar-filled words. The Alpha always knew just the right words to say so that Baekhyun's insecurities, doubts and overwhelming thoughts were quietened, incapable of further darkening the light within the vampire's soul.