Jungkook had entered Sehun’s invocation room but he knocked on the door, to draw Sehun’s attention. Sehun had been focused on his table, when the noise made him turn in surprise.

“Kookie!”

“Hyung…I’m leaving. Will probably be away for a long time. I’m here to say bye before I leave.” Jungkook said, walking over to Sehun. He hugged Sehun, who went silent in surprise.

When Jungkook stood back, Sehun spoke. 
“Wh-what do you mean you’re leaving?...Where are you going?” Sehun asked. 

“Hyung…there’s something important I need to do. More important than anything else. And…” Jungkook avoided Sehun’s eyes and paused before continuing. “There’s a lot to explain to you. But…I’ll do it later. I know it’ll be difficult for you to understand.”

Sehun stayed quiet. 
“Is this about Taehyung?” He asked. Jungkook looked up in shock and met his eyes. 

“H-hyung…What…How do you know?”

“That’s not important. Is it true that you-…you’re…you’re in love with that boy?” Sehun asked.

Jungkook turned away from Sehun. “Hyung, there’s no time for all this right now. I need to leave. And-…”

“Is that why you let your brother go?” Sehun’s tone had changed all of a sudden.
Jungkook turned to Sehun and saw the difference in his features which were now cold and rigid.
“After everything, every risk you took to get what you’ve always wanted. You went and released Seokjin. You got this far and then ruined it. Why? All because of that boy! The one whose name you couldn’t stand hearing not long ago!”

Jungkook remained quiet for a while. Then he walked up to Sehun slowly, stopping when he was just a few inches away from Sehun.

“Yes.” Jungkook said, his voice almost a whisper. “Because of that boy. Whom I used to hate. Because of Seokjin. Because of you.”

The hair on the back of Sehun’s neck stood up at Jungkook’s tone. He took a step back unknowingly.
“Kookie…”

Jungkook seemed to come to his senses. He drew himself back a few steps.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to say that.”

“Wow…” Sehun whispered. “That’s all it took?...A few days with that boy. I’ll admit he’s beautiful…but, Kookie…you of all people?...I would have bet my life that you would be the last person on earth to be hypnotized by beauty to forget everything.”

“Hyung…you don’t understand.” Jungkook sighed.

“You used to say Taehyung is the one you hate the most in the world. And all of a sudden, you’re in love with that same person. You can’t see anything beyond Taehyung all of a sudden. This isn’t the Jungkook I know. What’s wrong with you?!”

 “Hyung please.”

Sehun spoke after a brief silence. “I feared that this would happen one day. It’s natural. Choosing your own people…your family. I’m no one to you after all.”

Jungkook looked up at Sehun, his eyes flaming with emotion. “What?! Did you just say that?!...You know that I have regarded you as everything, my one and only family forever…And you think-…”

Sehun went quiet. He walked toward the table and sat down on one of the chairs.
“I can’t recognize you. You’ve changed completely.”

“Hyung I haven’t changed. Maybe it’s you who doesn’t trust me.”

Both Sehun and Jungkook were quiet for a while.

“I wish…” Sehun said finally. “I wish I could forgive as easily as you. I wish I could forgive people who hurt me…as easily as you did.”

Silence fell upon the room as neither of them spoke for a while. Finally, Jungkook broke the silence.

“It started with you, remember?” Jungkook whispered.
Sehun’s eyes shot up to his and he stood up slowly.

“The day I found out who I was. That I wasn’t really…your brother. That I was no one to you.” The emotion in Jungkook’s voice was intense. “That I was just something you had acquired to help you get your revenge. That was what hurt me in the worst way possible. Knowing that the brother I worship…he’s just using me for his mission. Loving people who hurt me isn’t new.”

“Jungkook!” Sehun’s voice was hoarse. He swallowed, blinking back the stinging sensation in his eyes.

“I forgave you. Then why not Seokjin?...You’re the one who asked for my life. You’re the one who started all of it. Because you needed your revenge. So hyung, now that I can’t serve as a means to help you get that anymore-…” Jungkook shrugged. “-…Why would you even care if I’m around anymore?”

“Jungkook! What are you saying?!”

“You’re no different than Seokjin. You never cared a bit about me either. You know what the difference between you and Seokjin is?...I never considered Seokjin as my brother…It was your betrayal…learning the truth about you that hurt me the most. I know we’ve been over this before. I remember your words, your apology, everything…I remember that I forgave you. How could I not? You were everything to me after all. But you know what…you’re the person who cares the least about me. Not Seokjin.”

“Kookie…you’re wrong…You couldn’t be more wrong about this!” Sehun said as a tear ran down his cheek and he wiped it away, composing himself.  “I know I got you with the wrong intentions. I know what I did is unforgiveable. And I deserve to be punished, not forgiven… I tried to be emotionally detached from you when I brought you home. But from that very first day, it was never possible. I-…Kookie, I’ve never thought of you as anything other than my own brother. You know I’m not lying.”

Sehun and Jungkook both fell silent. 
Sehun watched as Jungkook paced the room slowly, knowing that this was his way to try and calm himself down. 
After a long silence, Jungkook stopped and he turned to face Sehun. His face had changed.

“I’m sorry, hyung…I don’t know what came over me. I’m sorry for saying all that.” He said.

“No…you’re right.” Sehun said, sighing. “And…you should go and find Taehyung.”

Jungkook’s eyes widened in surprise.
“What?! Hyung, did I hear right?”

“Yes…You heard right.” Sehun said. 

“Woah. I did not expect that from you.” Jungkook said. His voice was so blank, out of shock, that it sounded almost comic.

Sehun sighed. “There’s something else that you don’t know yet. And you probably won’t want to come back to me after this.”

“Hyung, are you crazy?” Jungkook walked up to Sehun and placed a hand on his shoulder. “I said everything I just did in anger. You know how I get when I’m angry. I don’t mean any of it.” 

Sehun seemed to struggle internally before he said what he was about to.

“Jungkook…there’s something else that I’m guilty of. And you’ll hate me for this. Specially, now that you have feelings for Taehyung. But I don’t want you to find out from someone else. ” 

“What…” 

“I am the one who poisoned Taehyung in his childhood. He almost died….and it was because of me.”  Sehun sighed. “Vengeance had made me go blind. I wanted revenge…at whatever cost. And I took the worst way possible.” 

Jungkook stayed silent, his eyes on the ground.
After a while, Sehun broke the silence.

“I regretted it. Now that I look back…I know I couldn’t have let him die. I never wanted Taehyung’s death.” Sehun said. “But that doesn’t make me any less guilty. I know you won’t be able to forgive me after knowing this.” 

“I already know, Hyung.” 

Sehun looked up at Jungkook, shocked.
“What?!” 

“I heard everything you told Seokjin that day. When he was still inside the silver cage.” 

Sehun remembered that day. His conversation with Seokjin. His words about having no feelings about Jungkook.

“And…yet…you stayed with me. How could you not turn against me after…whatever I said?” 

“It’s not that easy to give up on people we love. Even if they are full of faults.” Jungkook said. “And I have to protect the one who loves me. In spite of my faults. That’s Taehyung.”

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 

Taehyung shifted position on his makeshift bed for what seemed to be the hundredth time that night. He huffed in frustration and turned to lie flat on his back, looking up at the ceiling – or what should have been a ceiling…it was merely a dilapidated thatched roof that was full of cracks and holes. But Taehyung did not dislike it, since it meant that the moonlight would come in freely. 
He gazed up at the moonlit sky visible through the cracks right now and sighed once more.

“That boy will not let me sleep! Argh!” Taehyung kicked his feet in irritation. “No! No I will NOT think about you!”

Taehyung tried to shut his eyes forcefully. But it didn’t help at all. All he could see, even with eyes closed was the unforgettable smile of a beautiful boy, eyes twinkling with mischief. He fought hard to drive the face out of his mind, but the more he tried the more Jungkook seemed to be taking over his every thought.

I hate you.
Get out of my head. Let me be!

Taehyung turned over again and this time he opened his eyes, staring off into space, giving up all expectations of sleep. 

Why should I lose sleep because of you? 
You deceived me all along. You hurt Jin hyung. You wanted to…you even wanted to kill me.
What kind of a fool am I to love you this madly after knowing all of that?! 
No…I can’t keep loving you. I hate you Jungkook, I hate you!    

Taehyung had been lying silently this way for some time when he heard some sounds outside. His ears picked up a few hushed voices and he sat up immediately, panic creeping up in his heart. The voices slowly approached closer and he could make out that they seemed to be talking in soft voices intentionally…probably because they didn’t want him to hear them…because they were definitely coming in the direction of the small shed in which he was sleeping.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Luhan ran to the door in a frantic race. Ever since the visit by rebels to the convent, he had lived in constant dread every night. Every time he heard someone’s arrival, he was overcome with fear. The rebels would obviously not announce their arrival by knocking, even if they did decide to return. Also, security had apparently been heightened by General Namjoon after the incident.

Still, when Luhan stood in front of the door, it took him a lot of courage to act. He raised his hand and moved it in a circle, following which, a swirling cloud of smoke was formed in front of the door. Inside the smoky window, in a few seconds, the faces of two boys were formed. Looking at the two faces, Luhan’s alarm subsided in a split second. It was replaced by a strange comforting sensation. 

He sighed in relief and then lifted the magical protection spells he had placed on the door. He then pulled the large door open.

“Were you sleeping?” Sehun asked.

“Of course not! Who sleeps at Three AM in the night?”  Luhan said, making an exaggerated smiling face at Sehun, that was actually a scowl.

“So, you want us to go away?” Sehun asked, raising an eyebrow.

Luhan’s eyes went wid