UpdatedNov 22, 2016

PublishedOct 30, 2016

 

Description

Donghae is kidnapped and used for a ritual. When found, he feels the same. It isn't until later on that he realizes what's happening. 

Foreword

So tell me how I'm inspired to write new stories but uninspired to finish the old ones 

Prologue

"Hyukjae, hurry up! What's taking you so long?" 

The couple had been preparing for a Halloween party, courtesy of their friend Siwon. They had attended each year as a complimenting couple: the last year they were Thing One and Thing Two from Dr Seuss. This year they wanted to do things differently, citing their other friend Heechul who claimed they were "damn near twins". 

Donghae had quickly chosen to be a witch. He never had the opportunity and figured it was something classic, but being a man would make it different. So he donned the whole attire; the famous pointed hat, long hooded dark green cape paired with some black jeans and a sparkling dark green shirt. After all, green was always an it color for Autumn (and Heechul would kill him if he wore anything tackier). Hyukjae, on the other hand chose to be a mummy. It wasn't the most iconic choice, but in his words it had its uniqueness. Hyukjae, being the glitter fiend that he was, was currently adding sparkles to his white linen layers thus the long wait. 

"You just had to add glitter. We're already 20 minutes late. You should've been Glinda the good witch with all that sparkle."

Hyukjae scoffed. "We said we weren't going to match this year. If we were both witches, Chullie would be on our again! I'm almost done just adding the final touches."

Donghae rolled his eyes and shifted, his cape crinkling underneath the movement. 

"There! All done!" 

When Hyukjae stepped out of the bathroom he was completely covered in head to toe with glitter. In Donghaes opinion, he looked like a glittery roll of toilet tissue. But alas, It still looked good on a frame such as Hyukjae's. The linen cloths coated him like a fine suit. 

"Thank goodness. Lets go. You're driving!"

"I can't drive! The cloths taper off past my ankle, my foot might get stuck!" Hyukjae cried out. 

"Really? I told you to cut it down a few layers."

"Sweetie, I'm a mummy. It's supposed to look like this." 

"Yeah well what mummy do you know wears rainbow glitter?"

Hyukjae placed his hands on his hips. "A fashionable one. Look, if it makes you feel better we can walk. It's just a few blocks away."

"Define few. It's almost a mile away." "Well we best start walking then right." Donghae kissed Hyukjaes mummified eyebrow. "The things I do for you."

As they began walking, they were halfway there when Hyukjae realized he forgot the bottle of Tequila his friend had asked for. 

"Wait are you serious? We can buy another one. There's one near Siwons house." 

"Yeah but they don't sell that specific brand, it's Siwons favorite,come on I promised him."

"No way am I walking back! It took enough effort getting here as it is" 

"Ok that's fine. I'll go back just wait here."

"You can run back but you can't drive?"

"It's beautiful outside. Do I need excuses to walk with you?" 

Donghae blushed, frowning. "You're so dramatic"

"I'll be back babe, wait for me here." 

"Fine but hurry up! I don't wanna miss the Jell-O shots." Hyukjae chuckled, tucked his linen cloths into his white vans and ran off. 

Time steadily past, Donghae checked his watch citing that Hyukjae had left 10 minutes ago and was probably reapplying the glitter that had flown off in the air and caught in donghae's overgelled hair. 

"There he is, Donghai" 

"Donghai" 

Donghae could hear whispers and frantically began looking around. It was a quiet neighborhood with a low crime rate but it didn't mean he was safe. Halloween was all game for criminals and the likes. "Hyuk is that you?" 

"Donghai" the voice whispered again. "Donghai" he spun around on his heels straining his eyes to see if anyone was around. Maybe it was a trick of his mind. It was fairly dark. "Donghae" he jumped back screaming and a leather clad glove covered his mouth. He could feel hands grabbing at him and he kicked and screamed against them. "Hyufjae!!!" 

"Donghai welcome back" and then his world went black.

 

Some 20 minutes later, a newly-glittered Hyukjae returned. He gasped for air, placed his clothed hands on his knees and spoke quickly with his eyes shut, knowing Donghae would be very angry at his late return.

"I'm sorry I was reapplying glitter when it got in my eyes and I had to shower again to wash it out and then reapply it!"

When silence returned, he opened his eyes and looked around. "Donghae? Hae?"

He quickly turned around, glancing left and right for any signs of the small-eyed witch. "You better not try to scare me! You know how terrified I get!" His eyes darted from bush to bush, from gate to fence, from tree to tree and yet no sign of his lover. 

Maybe he went to Siwon's already...Hyukjae thought and decided to leave himself. 

 

"Hey Wonnie!" Hyukjae called out, noting that for another year, his ironclad friend was a y vampire. As Siwon approached, he eyed him up and down, disgust filling in his features.

"Really? Again, Wonnie?"

Siwon spun in a circle showing off his overly oiled abs and his velvet red cape."You know it babe. Now where's my delicious Hae?"

Hyukjae grumbled. "You mean MY Hae?"

Siwon threw an arm around Hyukae's shoulders. "Formalities my friend, yours, mine, it's all the same."

Hyukjae frowned. "Where's Chullie anyway?"

Siwon rolled his eyes. "Entertaining the guests as always, with his feline habits."

"Just because you cannot fill out this outfit the same way I can, doesn't make it a terrible outfit." Heechul interjected. He was in a lioness body suit complete with makeup and a tail. 

"Now, as much as it is great to see you Hyukjae, I'd love to see my lovely Hae." Heechul glanced around Hyukjae, eyes trying to spot his beloved child. "I don't see him? Lovely ninja you are, darling! Now come out~"

"He isn't here?" Hyukjae asked. He could feel his throat tighten. Donghae would never have stood in the dark that long, he was terrified of it. And if he hadn't gone home and hadn't went straight to the party where could he be?

Heechul's eyes bulged. "He isn't at home? Did you leave him behind?!" Heechul's voice rose in anger and Hyukjae shrunk and hid behind Siwon.

"No, he was waiting for me-"

"-in the dark?! You know he hates the dark! WHERE IS HAE!?" Heechul's voice boomed. "EVERYONE GET OUT NOW!" The music stopped dramatically before all the guests began screaming and racing for the door. An angry Heechul was not to be tested. 

Siwon rubbed his lover's shoulders in a soothing manner. "Chullie, he's probably on his way now."

Heechul stood stifly, his eyes watering. "Something is wrong. I can feel it. Donghae's a grown man, he wouldn't wander off like a child. If he isn't here and he isn't home, where could he be?"

"Chullie, Hae is probably home. Maybe he got there after I already left."

"He would've called. He knows I worry."

"He knows you baby him." 

Heechul smacked Siwon on the head. "We're going to look for him, start calling his phone." He grabbed his coat and they exited the house, locking the door behind them.

Hyukjae immediately reacted and began calling his phone. It was a fairly distinct ringtone, one of his favorite songs, Blood, Sweat, and Tears. He played it so often that there wasn't a chance Donghae couldn't hear it. 

"Its ringing and heading straight to voicemail."

"Keep calling."

As they began walking back towards where Donghae last was, they could hear rhythmic whispering, but couldn't tell distinctly what it was. 

"Shh. Keep calling." 

As they peered closer to the thorny rose bush, the distinct melody of his favorite Korean song blasted in the air. They could see a small light hidden underneath one of the roses and Siwon quickly dove in to get it. He pricked his hand a few times and pulled out Donghae's phone.

Heechul snatched it from Siwon's hand and began sobbing. 

"If his phone is here then where is he?"

---

A/N: This is just an intro. The good stuff happens waaaaay later on.

Remarkable

Hyukjae is the first to suggest they call the police. Siwon says they should look around first, it isn't the first time Donghae had misplaced his phone. In the mall, some odd months ago he left it in a frozen yogurt shop. Only then it was never found. Now Donghae is the one who is missing. Heechul ignores them both and begins shouting across the neighborhood. 

"Chullie, shouting isn't helping." siwon goes to grab his arm only to find his friend helplessly sobbing. And Heechul never cries. A tough soul, he wraps his emotions in his fists and fights his way to revenge and redemption. Only this time there isn't anything to fight against and the clock is ticking for his friend. Halloween was dangerous enough but now with cops scattered across town racing against pranks and actual murderers, a kidnapping wouldn't be on the list. It hadn't even been two hours since Donghae's disappearance and he could very well be elsewhere. 

"We should check everyone we know. Donghae might've just gone to them. At least anyone in the vicinity." Siwon suggests. It makes sense and it's the best plan they have so they decide to give it a try.

"So that leaves Kyuhyun, Jungkook, Jimin and Taeyang-"

Heechul sniffles. "Not Taeyang. He moved out a few days ago remember?"

Hyukjae scratches his head. How could he forget such a thing. Taeyang had moved in with his girlfriend on the other side of town. No way would Donghae travel 20 miles over.

"I'll go to Kyuhyun. Heechul can visit Jungkook and Jimin. Hyukjae, you can search nearby. Check the stores and whatnot. Maybe he went to buy something."

They all nod their heads and go in different directions. The phone stays with Hyukjae.

 

JUNGKOOK AND JIMIN

Heechul knocks at the door as if it's his last breath. He presses the bell almost a dozen times before the door is answered angrily. It swings open, centimeters from his face as a robe-clad Jimin appears at the door.

"Can I help you!?"

"Jimin, have you seen Donghae?" Heechul hastily asks. In the back of his mind he questions the robe, but let's it slip past as finding his friend is more important.

'Chullie? What are you doing at this time of night? What happened to the party?" Jimin opens the door wider, recognizing his friend and signaling for Heechul to enter.

Heechul rushes in to find an equally robe-clad Jungkook, whose messy hair explains what they were just doing.

"I-I didn't mean to interrupt." Heechul apologizes. He never apologizes. Jungkook's eyes go wide as he looks toward his lover for answers.

Jimin calmly replies, "He's looking for Donghae."

"Hae?" Jungkook asks. "What about Hyukjae? They're always together."

"Donghae's missing." Heechul says. The word missing is bitter on his tongue. He can feel the blood rush to his head at the thought of something terrible happening to his lovable friend. He starts breathing heavily and it isn't until hands grab at him to pull him to sit down that he even realizes he's having a panic attack.

"I'll get some tea!" Jungkook announces.

Heechul stares into Jimin's frightened expression, now aware of the severity of the situation.

"How long has it been?"

Long enough. Heechul wants to say, but instead the honest "three hours" comes out in a raspy heap.

"He could be-"

"-don't." Jungkook intrudes. Heechul wants to say thank you but he's too busy counting every second that passes by instead. Heechul is handed tea as Jungkook sits beside him, rubbing his back in soothing circles.

"Donghae and Hyukjae are inseparable, Jimin. It isn't like Donghae to rush off somewhere without letting him know."

Jimin rushes up out of his seat, hands pressed firmly against his hips. Heechul can vaguely make out their arguing, something over long-term relationships and communication. He's almost sure it's about the time Jimin went to California without telling Jungkook. But Donghae wasn't Jimin and this isn't what's happening right now, so he intervenes right after sipping his tea.

"Donghae would never do such a thing. He loves Hyukjae too much to vanish for a joke. It's Halloween. He's terrified of the dark, he doesn't like being scared and he cries whenever Hyukjae leaves for more than a day. So either you know where he is, or you don't and you help us find him."

The duo responds immediately. "We'll get dressed."

 

KYUHYUN

It isn't odd at all that Siwon finds Kyuhyun at a bar singing his life away. Ever since Yesung went off to Europe on a book tour, he'd been a miserable mess. Siwon doesn't intervene until the booing flows over "I will always love you" and Kyuhyun shouts back, again a drunken mess.

"Kyu, please. We need your help."

Kyuhyun tosses the mic, grabs at his glass of Henny and Cranberry, and waltzes right pass Siwon to a nearby table seated for one.

"Oh what is it now?" Kyuhyun exclaims in a drunken slur.

Siwon gets straight to the point. "Donghae is missing. Have you seen him?"

The glass slips from Kyuhyun's fingertips and crashes onto the floor. The glass shatters across the wooden floor and echoes against the music playing loudly in the back. Everyone around him is too drunk to react.

"Whatdya say?"

"Donghae is missing." Siwon replies, a bit slower than before. He's not sure how Kyuhyun is handling the news. After all, Yesung is Donghae's cousin. The words hang in the air silently before he reacts.

"We've gotta go." He grabs at his jacket and rushes out, he stumbles over himself before hurling in the street.

"Kyu, you need rest."

"I can't lose them both." Kyuhyun's eyes tear up again and he takes a few steps before falling onto his knees. Siwon holds him, arms wrapped around his shoulders as he sobs uncontrollably.

Donghae was the one who set them up.

 

HYUKJAE

The minutes pass by slowly. Even after Siwon and Heechul left, he stands in place with the phone held tightly in his hand. It doesn't feel right. It's odd. Who would dare to think of hurting Donghae? Donghae. His innocent, precious boyfriend. He knew good people went first. That's how his dog died and why his lover's father isn't around anymore. Still, he wasn't ready to lose Donghae. Not when there was a ring tucked away in his closet remained.

The lump in his throat grew. He began walking, but the steps felt heavier by the second. He couldn't be missing. He couldn't. Not a grown man. He would've fought-and yelled and-he bites back tears. His body begins shaking and it isn't from the cold. He can't feel cold anymore. He wraps his arms around him, sees the phone and he's wracked with grief. The pain so unbearable, he rushes to lean against the nearest tree. The tears cascade down his cheeks steadily. He bites his tongue, trying to contain the churning in his stomach. The bile lurks up his throat and he bends over, vomiting onto the sidewalk. He gasps for air, no longer able to hold back the terror as he screams madly into the air for Donghae.

No one is listening. They think it's a prank. He wishes it were.

"Donghae!!" He yells as loudly as he can. Screeching it into the air until he's running. Feet picked up off the ground, no longer caring about his costume until he trips on a loose piece of linen and goes tumbling onto the cement. He bumps his head and scrapes his leg, only to start crawling. The adrenaline, the fear filling in his body's realization that it is in pain both physical and mental, and both very, very real.

He doesn't stop crawling even as hands yank him backwards, pulling him onto his feet.

"Hyukjae!"

"Hyukjae!"

The voices are white noise. His mind is focused entirely on Donghae. He can see him. He can see his face wretched with agony. He can see blood and he screams again. A hand smacks his cheek firmly and it is his own blood that he can taste.

"Hyukjae, who is it from? Who is this from!?"

He doesn't know what the person is saying. His mind still racing and his heart beats faster and faster. Hands grab his shoulder firmly and shake him.

"Hyukjae! Calm down! Hyukjae!"

"Hyukjae!"

His vision clears out. His head darts back and forth to find Heechul and their other friends around him, faces strewn with concern.

"Who is the picture from?"

He's about to respond with what picture when Heechul shoves a phone in front of his face.

"Come watch our ceremony. XOXO"

And there's a photo of Donghae, with a busted lip and blood trail down his forehead.

"Who is it from Hyukjae!?" Heechul asks again.

He grabs at the phone only to realize that it belongs to Donghae and that the messages are divided into two parts. The photo from a few minutes ago, right before his panic attack and the first from when Donghae disappeared.

 

Stolen

"Who is it from Hyukjae?

Hyukjae stared at the phone. His mind recalling how his last image of Donghae was of him looking at his phone.

"Hyuk!" Heechul shouted impatiently.

"I-I don't recognize the number." He stared at the digits, but nothing came to mind. If anything, the number looked like spam. Maybe a bill collector? Unless it was the mafia, it didn't make sense.

"We've tried calling it, but the line goes dead. Obviously he recognized the number-"

Hyukjae interrupted Jimin. "-He would never have gone. I've known Hae damn near my entire life. He would've never left me to go to whomever this person is. It's impossible. If he did, and that's a big if, he would've told me first."

Hyukjae searched through the phone. The image of a bloodied Donghae flashing in his mind. He couldn't find so much as a call to himself.

"We should call the police." Jungkook suggested.

"It hasn't been long enough."

They all glanced behind them to find Kyuhyun and Siwon steadily approaching. Kyuhyun spoke again, "It's only been-" A fist broke off his words and he stumbled backwards into Siwon's arms.

"Chullie! Enough!" Siwon firmly stated. Kyuhyun's head was spinning and he took longer to recouperate. The alcohol still swirling in his system. Kyuhyun wiped at his mouth, eyes fixated on the dark red blood on his thumb.

"I deserved that." Siwon pushed Kyuhyun onto his feet.

"Damn right you did. You disappear after your breakup and expect decency? You only decide to come around because it relates to Yesung?"

Kyuhyun flinched. The name still had power over him.

Siwon shifted between the two, acting as a human barrier. "Enough you two. We need to find Donghae."

"Not to interrupt the romance, but we need the police. I'm sure they have a lot more power than us in finding Hae." Jungkook reiterated. Jimin gaped at his lover.

"Are you serious, Kookie? It hasn't been a full day. Only a couple hours. They would never take our statement seriously. Think about it, it's Halloween. The day of trick-or-treat. They'd think it was a bunch of guys goofing off."

"It doesn't matter what day it is, Min! This isn't a prank, it's our ing friend! Would you rather they find his dead body!" Jungkook spat right back.

Everyone stood silent. It was a very real possibility. Most people didn't go missing and end up happily alive. They were usually found dead either days later or years later. Hyukjae wasn't about to wait that long to find out.

"So what do we do, Chullie?"

The statement shocked Heechul who wasn't entirely sure himself. They had been wandering for hours on end. They didn't have any leads and were back to square one. The text was an empty message, spam for all they knew. And of all the episodes of Law and Order he had binge-watched, no episode ended nicely without any evidence to follow.

*Ring Ring*

"Jimin for once turn off your ing phone!" Heechul shouted, aggravated at the disturbance.

"It's almost midnight. Who is it this time!" Jungkook demanded.

Jimin crossed his arms over his body. "I don't even have my phone on me! And what do you mean again!?"

"If it isn't that ing V guy then whose-"

Everyone went silent again as they listened to the ringtone.

~Peaches and cream sweeter than sweet chocolate cheeks and chocolate wings~

"It's Donghae's"

The phone in Hyukjae's hand vibrated, the song replaying itself over and over. Hyukjae didn't move. Heechul snatched the phone from his hand and answered it.

"Hello?"

"I see the gang is together."

Shivers ran through Heechul's bones and he trembled slightly. The voice was dark and raspy.

"Who is this?"

"Doesn't matter. I'm extending an invitation to you."

"What invitation?"

The gang listened closely. Neither of them understood what was happening, but the same thought ran through all of their heads. Did Donghae really leave them to go to another party?

"Party time" 

"What do you mean by that? Hello? Hello?"

"Party time at your house"

Tiny beads of sweat began forming on Heechul's forehead. It didn't make sense.

Siwon was the first to react. "What does that mean?"

"I'm-I'm not sure. It was an invitation to a party."

Kyuhyun sighed in relief. "So it's just a party then. We worried for nothing."

"But it was our party. We canceled it as soon as Donghae went missing." Siwon replied.

They all looked at each other before bolting off to Siwon's apartment, a mile away. Siwon helped Kyuhyun to run as he was too intoxicated to properly walk without assistance. When they had finally arrived, the others were standing as still as mannequins. Their bodies frozen in shock.

"What's with everyone?" Kyuhyun asked.

"Maybe my house decorations scared them."

"D-Donghae."

The duo shifted their way through the others and found Donghae covered in blood with a name carved into his forearm. The stench of blood filled their nostrils and Kyuhyun slouched over, vomiting onto the sidewalk again. Siwon removed his arm from Kyuhyun and walked towards his friend where he could make out the name: DONGHAI. It was carved in capital letters and he could see the white bits of Donghae's bones. His mind fluttered and he felt dizzy for a moment, swaying in place. But as quickly as he saw the letters, the carving began to fade away. His flesh stitched itself within a second and Siwon blinked. His heart and mind racing at what he just saw. He watched as the others moved quickly to cover Donghae up and lead him into the house.

Right as Siwon was about to walk inside, Kyuhyun grabbed him by the shoulder.

"You saw that right?" Kyuhyun asked as if he was afraid of the answer. Everyone else seemed to move so...normally as if finding a loved one covered in blood and carved up was a daily thing. Let alone the carving having healed itself.

"Did they?" Kyuhyun asked again, growing more and more unsure of himself.

"I think we all did."

"So who is Donghai?"

 

MARKINGS

 

"So what was that exactly?" Siwon asked. Kyuhyun was slowly sobering up as Siwon handed him a few treats left over from the cancelled party. He ate it quietly trying to process what he had just seen. None of it made sense, was it the alcohol? Siwon wasn't as drunk as he was, but anything could happen. 

"I'm not sure. I don't think any of us are sobe-wait Hyukjae!" Siwon called out to the man currently attending to his boyfriend. 

"What happened?"

"The bruise he had on his forehead...it's gone." They all glanced at Donghae and as Hyukjae wiped his forehead, dried blood caked off.....but there wasn't a single mark.

"Is this a joke?!" He yelled, jumping backwards. He immediately began to pace. Heechul took his spot and carefully inspected Donghae, noticing there wasn't a single bruise. If anything, his skin was as pure as it was before. Completely unmmared. 

"That's impossible." Heechul gently caressed Donghae, trying to get him to wake up and within a few minutes, his eyes fluttered. 

"I made it to the party?" He asked a bit confused. The gang stared at him in disbelief, watching as he sat upright and examined his own body. 

"Where's my shirt? and where did the fake blood come from? Hyukjae" he said softly, "you couldn't wait till after the party?"

Everyone gasped, including Hyukjae who charged forward and hugged the smaller man. 

"Hyukkie, not here~" He whined and Hyukjae sighed. 

"Do you remember anything Hae?" 

Donghae shook his head. "Not at all. I was waiting for you and then I woke up here."

"You don't remember anything at all, Hae?" Heechul pressed again, but Donghae shook his head once again. "Well come then Hae, let's get you cleaned off."

"What about the party, Heenim?"

Heechul sighed. "It ended, Hae. Let's put on some scary movies and eat popcorn instead." 

Donghae nodded and promptly followed Heechul to the bathroom.