By the time that he and Jongin had met up with Chanyeol and Baekhyun at the agreed time Kyungsoo could already feel the tense air hanging over Chanyeol, who seemed to have his head stuck in the clouds right now. Baekhyun offered them both a shy smile, his knuckles white from gripping his bag's straps too tightly. He wanted to reach out and wrap his hand around Baekhyun's shoulder, try and reassure him that what was going to happen wasn't as bad as he thought.

But how could he know that?

Kyungsoo had been in Baekhyun's place before, he had seen what it was like being 'welcomed' into the family and he certainly felt the distance that had been placed from the moment he met the original family members. Which is why he had decided to take it upon himself to be the one warning the boy of his mate's family, Kyungsoo didn't have anyone to tell him how hard it was so he was glad being able to help Baekhyun. They could handle it together, maybe even gain strength and confidence from one another. Kyungsoo could only hope.

"Are you ready?" Jongin wondered, his questions directed at both of them. Kyungsoo took a breath and nodded his head, his lips pressed into a thin line.

"Aren't I always?"

"I'm nervous," Baekhyun admitted, sliding off his backpack to put it into the back of Chanyeol's car. "this isn't something I've done before..."

"I guess it's best to get it done and over with now rather than later huh?" Chanyeol attempted a grin but it was obvious that he found it hard to make it genuine, Kyungsoo and Baekhyun appreciated the gesture though.

"After you!" Jongin grinned, holding the back seat passenger door open. Kyungsoo giggled as he skipped towards him, back now free of his bag. He pressed his puckered lips against his boyfriend's before jumping into the backseat, hands searching for the seatbelt next to him knowing how nervous Chanyeol gets when no one is protected in his car.

"Do you mind if I sit with Kyungsoo?" Baekhyun's sweet voice filled his ears, forcing the vampire to turn his head to the side. He watched through the window as Jongin dipped his head, moving on up to the passenger seat where he would be sitting in front of his mate and beside his brother. Chanyeol opened the door for Baekhyun who rewarded him with an innocent kiss to the cheek, his cheeks burning as he slid into the seat next to Kyungsoo.

They offered each other a genuine smile, Baekhyun's hand coming to rest on top of his once he had finished putting his seat belt on. Chanyeol took a couple seconds buckling himself into his seat, his movements hesitant because everyone knew he wasn't comfortable about the new arrangement.

"We were actually going to bring you to a spot we go to whenever we go hiking," Kyungsoo explained to Baekhyun who looked surprised by the topic of conversation. "it's a little high in the mountains but the view is incredible. I'm sorry that we have to bring you home, believe me it wasn't our decision..."

"Don't sweat it," Baekhyun tried to reassure them all, his smile brightening up the air ever so slightly. "in a way I'm quite flattered that they want to meet me."

Kyungsoo couldn't help but squeeze the poor boy's hands, offering him a small smile when he turned to look at him in confusion. Something about Kyungsoo's facial expression must have registered in Baekhyun's brain as a problem otherwise there would have been no other reason for the pitiful smile that the human had sent him back, Kyungsoo felt the tears well up in his eyes after Baekhyun's fingers tightened around his. He turned his gaze so that it now rested on the moving objects outside the car, his breathing slow but his heart pounding against his chest.

"You and me." Baekhyun reminded him, dragging Kyungsoo's mind back to that night where the both of them had been confessing their problems and insecurities. It made him feel refreshed, confident even that he had someone else to share this with. Jongin was sweet and Kyungsoo loved him, but as he was a part of the Royal Family there was no way that he would understand... bastard son or not.

The drive to the castle was long and quiet, but as the minutes drew by the heavy atmosphere hanging over the car slowly began to disperse. Kyungsoo didn't know how to explain it but he felt like the air had grown clearer and his head wasn't as mashed as before, it felt like something invisible was wrapping it's comforting arms around the entire car calming their nerves and extinguishing some of their anger.

"So where exactly are we going?" Baekhyun questioned, blinking rapidly as he looked into the driver's compartment of the car. Jongin turned to look at the human, brows raised and jaw hanging open. Kyungsoo noticed how stiff Chanyeol's arms had become on the steering wheel.

Great. They didn't have a clue.

"Yeah Chanyeol where exactly are you taking him?" Kyungsoo stressed the few words that slipped past his mouth, his eyes locked on the prince's through the rear-view mirror. Chanyeol looked panicked but he didn't say anything, he simply turned his gaze back to the road. Kyungsoo watched as the prince took out his phone from his front pocket, handing it to Jongin without another word.

The younger son of the king took it into the palm of his hand, without a second's hesitation he swiped across the screen seemingly opening the chat that Chanyeol had been complaining about earlier that morning. Baekhyun didn't dare speak, he simply watched as the two brothers cast each other small glances, his teeth biting down on his lower lip.

Kyungsoo didn't know exactly where they were going since there were way too many properties that the royal family had, it would be incredibly dangerous if they were bringing the human to the castle. Too many vampires who possibly weren't trained well enough to avoid the scent of human blood, heck even Kyungsoo himself found it hard to control himself in Baekhyun's presence. The boy's scent was addicting and there was no doubt in his mind that Baekhyun's blood tasted just as pleasant, however since he had filled his stomach with boar's blood before school he didn't fancy eating for at least another day.

"Oh for sake!" Chanyeol scoffed, rolling down the window and throwing the device Jongin had returned to him out of it. Baekhyun watched it pass by him through his own window, his jaw hanging open in surprise. Kyungsoo face palmed.

"Suho is declaring the manor." Jongin explained to his mate, his eyes fierce and unsettling. Kyungsoo felt his shoulders raise at the use of the nickname for the castle, his stomach turning in distaste as he looked towards Baekhyun. He felt his breath hitch as the human turned to look back at him having sensed his gaze first, he offered Kyungsoo a clueless smile, his eyes dancing in excitement for what was ahead. Not having even a remote clue as to what he was getting himself into.

Instantly he pulled out his own phone, he fumbled over the password for a moment, fingers too quick to place the numbers in correctly. When the phone's lock screen opened he blew out a quick breath of relief, his fingertips working to find his messages with Katherine. He didn't allow himself to sound formal or loving in the message he sent, begging to know what the the two of tehm were thinking about letting Baekhyun into the very centre of a vampire hive.

A message came back almost immediately, its contents making Kyungsoo's blood run cold. Katherine was desperately trying to make Suho see sense but apparently the Queen wasn't willing to listen to what she had to say, claiming that it would be good for the future Queen to see the life he would be inheriting.

"Suho is out of his mind..." Kyungsoo spoke before realising his words, he clamped a hand over his mouth and cast a glance to Baekhyun who seemingly didn't take anything useful out of that sentence. "Baekhyun I don't think that this is a good idea-"

"I'm with Kyungsoo on this Baek," Chanyeol agreed, allowing himself to turn his head just long enough to look his mate in the eye as he spoke. "There is a lot I haven't had the chance of telling you and for whatever reason my Appa doesn't seem-"

"I'll be okay." Baekhyun reassured those in the car, his eyes locked on a spot of air directly between himself and Kyungsoo. "I trust you guys, I know nothing is going to happen to me."

Kyungsoo's brows furrowed in the centre of his forehead, he didn't know why but he thought that Baekhyun's words held a deeper meaning than just reassurance. He turned his gaze back to Chanyeol who had resumed his driving, the Prince was biting his lower lip looking immensely uncomfortable. Apparently Baekhyun was able to sense it since he reached out his hand and pressed it between the small gap of the driver's seat headrest, he curled his fingers through Chanyeol's hair.

Kyungsoo's gaze fell to the hand that had placed itself onto his leg, Jongin's warm smile calming his nerves ever so slightly. He nodded and took a deep breath, if Baekhyun was ready to walk head-first into something he had no idea about then Kyungsoo was ready to protect him.

"Well I can't say if that went well or not..." Nana sighed, shaking her head from side to side her eyes closed. Baekhyun sent her a quick glance, biting his lower lip to prevent himself from laughing. The ghost had arrived during their joint English class, shyly waving her hand at Baekhyun who had been rendered motionless by seeing her sudden appearance in school.

As she knew that Baekhyun couldn't openingly communicate with her surrounded by other people, she had resumed either staying quiet or giving him small pieces of information. She had claimed that she was there because she knew where he would be going with Chanyeol and his family members later, she didn't want Baekhyun to go alone and willingly placed herself in the situation, something that Baekhyun would admit later (when they were alone) that he felt grateful for. Now, she was sitting on the seat directly between Baekhyun and Kyungsoo who seemingly didn't feel her presence by his side.

"Like I told you earlier it appears that my son is forcing Chanyeol to bring you to the castle, not his brightest idea, believe me but I can assure you that nothing will happen to you there. I won't leave your side the entire time and I've been to the castle before so I know my way around if anything does go down."

Baekhyun couldn't stop himself from slumping in his seat, his lower lip jutting out ever so slightly. His gesture went unnoticed by Kyungsoo and Jongin who seemed to be in a world of their own, watching as Jongin traced invisible lines on Kyungsoo's leg with his index. His lips curled upwards, ears perking up when he heard Nana begin to talk again.

"They're a cute couple, it's been a long while since I've seen either of them. Jongin was quite young the last time I saw him and Kyungsoo was only ever shown to me through photographs in the mail, they've grown so much."

Baekhyun tilted his head to the side, his eyes trained on Nana's legs so that he didn't look completely out of his mind staring at the seat right next to Kyungsoo. He wanted to ask just how long had passed but figured against it, if he was to open his mouth and declare such a thing when no-one in the car was already talking, it would look bad and Baekhyun didn't want his secret of being able to see the dead out just yet. At least he could wait until Chanyeol revealed that he was a vampire, hopefully that would be sometime soon given the current circumstances.

Nana on the other hand seemed to understand what the boy was thinking, as she released a deep breath. She shifted in her seat getting closer to him but not entirely invading his personal space. "I stopped seeing Chanyeol after he reached ninety, Jongin had visited when he was a lot younger but I don't think it was until he was in his seventies that I fully stopped seeing him. They're still fairly young boys themselves now, but they have honestly grown up so much after all this time. You have to understand Baekhyun being a vampire things are different for us, time gets sort of muddled and we confuse quite a lot of things. Our growth is slow and prolonged, vampires don't stop growing until they reach their two hundreds sometimes. Oftentimes we overlay our age with human ages like for example a human child of four is generally the same size as a vampire newborn. It's a complicated mindset but one you will just simply have to grow accustomed too."

Baekhyun dipped his head and rose it again steadily, ultimately nodding but making it prolonged for Nana who seemed to catch on to his meaning. Her giggle took up his senses before Chanyeol deep cough echoed through the car pulling him back into the 'living' conversation.

"We're here.." he addressed no one in particular. Almost instantly Baekhyun's gaze turned to the window by his side, his breath hitching in his throat. He stared at the large black gating surrounding a giant castle which towers seemed to reach the clouds, it was an incredible piece of architecture but Baekhyun's entire body was filled with goosebumps. Every ounce of his body was vibrating, his hands growing sweaty as his heart picked up the pace in his chest pounding against his ribcage and leaving him momentarily winded. The castle was beautifully surrounded in a dark aura that Baekhyun wanted to run from, apparently he wasn't alone since Nana's surprised gasp also claimed that she was incapable of taking in the sight before her.

"You live here?" Baekhyun spoke without registering the words, his eyes wide as the car continued towards the front doors. "This place looks incredibly old..."

"The people inside it are probably older." Jongin joked pushing open the car door the moment it had come to a halt. Kyungsoo released a giggle at the seemingly inside joke, jumping out of the car the next second. Baekhyun bit his lower lip to prevent himself from laughing along, he had an act to play.

But before he could step out of the car himself Chanyeol had turned in his seat and taken his ankle in his grip forcing the painter to stumble backwards against his seat. He looked up in confusion, expecting his mate to begin speaking but nothing came out of Chanyeol's opened lips. As the seconds ticked by Baekhyun began to realise what was happening. Chanyeol was overwhelmed with his thoughts, most of them more than likely telling him to reveal his secret to Baekhyun before anyone else did. Silently the painter slipped his fingers through his mate's gently prying them from his ankle and interlocking them before Chanyeol could complain.

"I know you didn't want to bring me here.." he began, not entirely knowing where he wanted to go with this. He knew that he wasn't going to blow his cover before Chanyeol was ready to tell him, so he figured that he could try to reassure his mate in another way. "and I know that you have a lot more to tell me in explanation for all of this, but as the circumstances have called for this you're being compliant even though every inch of your body is telling you to take me away from here-"

"I never wanted to put you in danger like this Baekhyun" Chanyeol couldn't meet his gaze, Baekhyun held his breath. Was Chanyeol about to tell him? "you're my mate and the very last thing I want is for you to get hurt, but my Appa-"

"Even though I have no clue as to what you're talking about right now just know that I trust you." Baekhyun grinned when his eyes finally got to meet his mate's, shock and surprise evident in Chanyeol's gaze. "I believe that you won't allow anything to happen to me, I know that you'll protect me right?"

Chanyeol nodded his head, his grip on Baekhyun's hand tightening.

"Then you don't have to worry about anything, as long as you remain by my side throughout this introduction then I will be fine. You don't have to tell me anything, it's probably for the best that I keep to what I do know about you for now right?" Again Chanyeol nodded his head, although his eyes appeared to have sunken in ever so slightly. "You don't have to tell me anything until you're ready, I'm not going anywhere."

Baekhyun hoped that his words were enough to convince his mate that his feelings were genuine, he didn't plan on going anywhere even if the truth had been revealed. Baekhyun understands Chanyeol's hestiance because he himself has a secret that he is hesitant to share, as he is afraid that his mate will look at him like he was crazy regardless of his vampirism.

"Are you ready for this?" Chanyeol whispered, his eyes finding the floor again when Baekhyun moved closer to him. "It's going to be a -show."

"Well I'm ready when you are..." he whispered right back, holding onto his smile before allowing his lips to meet against Chanyeol's. They both hummed in content, Baekhyun's mind dragging him back to their shared time in the library, a deep crimson blush spread across his cheeks. When they pulled apart Baekhyun giggled at the overwhelming sense of appreciation coming from Chanyeol's gaze, the giant really made him feel that he was no longer invisible.

When they were able to pull themselves away from each other long enough to get out of the car, Baekhyun allowed Kyungsoo to wrap an arm through his own holding onto him tightly as he viewed the castle with nervous eyes. The artist placed his fingers over his new friend's clenched fists, offering him a small smile when their gazes met. Jongin and Chanyeol sent them both nervous glances before making their way towards the front doors, their shoulders stiff and their movements almost robotic. Baekhyun took a deep breath and looked to his left, Nana was standing right next to him, her eyes surveying the castle and all of it's stones.

"Best not to cast a glance at it for too long Baekhyun," she claimed as she walked ahead shaking her head. "you won't be around long enough to see it."

He released that breath when he felt Kyungsoo's fingers gently curl through his own, they sent each other a small nod before moving towards the front doors which were now opened for them.

"Well it's an honest pleasure to meet you Baekhyun, I've heard so much about you!" The woman gushed, her cold long fingers pressed against both of the painter's cheeks. She giggled when Baekhyun's lips curled upwards at her heartfelt greeting, having never expected her to pull him into a hug the moment he stepped foot into the kitchen. "My name is Katherine, I'm Jongin's mother."

Baekhyun dipped his head, trying to bow but as he was restricted by the woman's fingers on his cheeks he could do nothing but comply. Thankfully Chanyeol was there to pull him out of her embrace, they shyly sent each other a glance before Baekhyun's attention was taken by Katherine once again only now the vampire seemed to have gotten control of herself.

"Now Baekhyun I have quite a couple questions for you if you don't mind, but first I would have to ask if you would like anything to eat or drink. I went grocery shopping this morning just for this moment although I did assume that we would be meeting on the mountain and not here." Katherine offered him a guilty smile, her long fingers resting against her lips in an almost praying formation.

"I could eat." The boy replied, watching as the woman giggled and began clapping her hands.

"Oh excellent, now let me see here.." she rambled on to herself as she rushed into the pantry, Baekhyun was pretty sure he had just blinked and she had disappeared. He guessed that that wasn't supposed to have happened since he could hear Katherine curse herself out in the pantry with Jongin cleared his throat in an attempt to get his attention.

"She's not much of a cook so I think that Kyungsoo might end up making lunch." Jongin giggled, pressing his puckered lips against his mate's cheek. The chef rolled his eyes before pushing himself out of his mate's hold.

"Katherine let me help you!" he called, taking quick steps in order to get to her. Baekhyun almost found himself laughing when Kyungsoo attempted to rush but not as quickly as his mother-in-law had done before.

"She seems very nice." Baekhyun whispered to Chanyeol who was sitting on a stool by the island. He chuckled and nodded his head, bringing his mate closer by the waist. Baekhyun allowed his arms to come up and rest them around the taller's shoulders, applying just the right amount of pressure to reassure the anxious vampire.

"Katherine may not be my birth mother but she is my Eomma." Chanyeol explained watching as Baekhyun nodded along taking in the information he had already pieced together from his experiences with Nana. Speaking of the ghost she was making a lot of noise from the pantry as she had followed after the two claiming that they were both useless when it came to preparing 'real food' whatever the hell that meant. "She helped my Appa take care of me since he was always busy with his job and such."

"And your father?" Baekhyun wondered, watching as Chanyeol's eyes widened. He doesn't remember telling Baekhyun about his family life and yet he had been able to tell he was a child of a gifted one. "Both you and Jongin have different birthing parents but you have the same father-"

" donor." Chanyeol clarified, his words making a laugh escape through Baekhyun's lips before he could even stop it.

" donor, well I haven't heard that one before but I like it." he admitted, setting his fingers to work threading through his mate's locks. Chanyeol hummed at the action, his eyes closing to savour it. "You never talked about him so I don't know if it was okay to bring him up."

"He's not around often," Jongin took it upon himself to explain, his words coming from behind the fridge door. "But whenever he is him and Chanyeol constantly fight."

Baekhyun puckered his lips, not liking the fact that his mate had an unsteady relationship with his father but he knew that it wasn't his place to say anything. Instead he simply thanked Jongin who had gotten him a glass of orange juice from the fridge, Chanyeol pulled Baekhyun onto his lap and from there the boy was able to wrap his arm around his mate's neck to continue playing with his hair but to also have a free hand to drink his juice.

"Do you fight with him too?"

"Whenever Chanyeol isn't around," Jongin nodded his head, shrugging his shoulders when Baekhyun looked at him with a risen brow. "what can I say, our father's a . He likes violence and when he can't get it from Chanyeol he searches for it elsewhere, usually that's with me or some other poor soul."

"Must you tell him all of our family's secrets or should we just prepare for the torches and pitchforks now then?" A male's voice that Baekhyun didn't recognise sounded throughout the room, making the poor boy jump on Chanyeol's lap. His mate groaned when he landed back down on his thighs, but his groan quickly turned into a growl that brought all of Baekhyun's blood to his-

"Appa what did we talk about this morning?" Chanyeol warned the man as he walked into the room, wearing jeans and a simple white shirt. Baekhyun thought that he would be wearing a suit or something a little more elegant but he just figured that every item of his outfit was high end.

"It's nice to finally meet you Baekhyun," the man offered the painter a tight lipped smile that had Baekhyun narrowing his eyes. "I've been waiting for Chanyeol to bring you to me the moment he met you. You see we take soulmates very seriously in this household so when my son didn't want to bring you home to us you must understand that I questioned your very existence, his father has been wanting to set up an arrange marriage with a business man's daughter-"

"Appa!" Chanyeol scolded, snapping his head upwards to meet his father's gaze. Baekhyun stared at the man before him, watching him as he limped towards the sink without a care towards the words he had just spewed.

"I just figured that he made you up to avoid getting married." The man shrugged his shoulders, his face no longer something Baekhyun can see now that his back was facing them.

Jongin's head hung between his shoulders, his hands forming fists on top of the counter. Chanyeol wasn't any better, his grip on Baekhyun's waist was getting tighter with every breath he took. Apparently he seemed to forget that Baekhyun wasn't a vampire and could actually get hurt by his strength that Chanyeol definitely possessed, thankfully he was able to pick up on Baekhyun's pain whine. He loosened his grip and pressed an apology kiss against his cheek, Baekhyun taking his hand into his own and held it tighter hoping it would calm him down even just a little.

"I'm sure that his father would be disappointed to know that he can't get a business deal out of their arrangement." Baekhyun spoke with confidence, secretly thanking the nuns who taught him when to control his words whenever he was addressing someone older than him.

"I wonder what the hell is shoved up his ..." That familiar voice of Nana almost made Baekhyun lose his composure, he had been so close to blurting out his laughter that he had actually suffered a slight pain in his chest that he had to cover with a lame cough so no one would think anything else was happening. "I mean I know that I died and he's probably handling it badly but I never expected him to be like this!"

"Oh Kris is definitely going to hate this situation when he comes back from China, hopefully I won't have to deal with him when that happens. Chanyeol is fully capable of dealing with his father for me-"

"You allow your son to fight your battles for you?" Baekhyun wondered, his fingers drumming against the island's countertop. He could feel the corners of his lips curl upwards when Suho turned to look at him in shock, ready to explode but was unable to as Katherine returned from the pantry with Kyungsoo hot on her tail. They were both staring at Suho with wide eyes, Baekhyun could only assume that they heard the entire exchange and had come back to stop anything else from happening.

"So Baekhyun I was thinking that I could simply make you some sandwiches, Kyungsoo thought that you would appreciate that more than any of the fancier dishes we could whip up for you." Katherine really made Baekhyun feel comfortable, she just screamed all good things in the world while Chnayeol's Appa seemed a little standoffish with him. Almost as if he didn't want him anywhere near his son, which is understandable as Chanyeol is after all - a prince.

"You're not making him sandwiches, if he is going to take over my position in the future he has to learn how to deal with our life-style." Chanyeol's Appa scolded both Katherine and Kyungsoo who both shrunk into themselves at the shout, Baekhyun jumped at the venom behind those words. "I expected this from Kyungsoo but not from you Katherine!"

Jongin growled, his eyes flashing an amber glow. Baekhyun hadn't imagined what he thought the vampires would look like when their 'monster' side was released from its chains, but he never expected that their eyes changed colour. His building manager had got him accustomed to the sight with his piercing blue glow but he couldn't deny that Jongin's amber colour was beautiful and very enchanting, he wondered if Chanyeol had a particular colour or if it resembled his half brother's.

"Jongin." Kyungsoo gasped, appearing beside his mate a second later. Baekhyun could feel his lips curl but he prevented the grin from completely forming, he instead turned his head to Chanyeol's Appa who still hadn't introduced himself formally to Baekhyun just yet. The painter figured that he wouldn't be getting it from him any time soon.

"Sandwiches are fine for me honestly," Baekhyun reassured Katherine who didn't seem to know what to do now that Suho had opened his mouth. "they're a very welcoming food and I would be happy to eat anything my host is willing to give me."

"If you're thinking about taking over my position in this family than I suggest you learn now that sandwiches will not be prohibited-"

"Is he seriously getting pressed because of sandwiches?" Nana's voice was filled with astonishment, her eyes wide as she shared her gaze between Baekhyun and her son and back again. Her sarcastic laugh had Baekhyun momentarily forget that his mate's father was still going on a tangent about how sandwiches were the worst food to give to guests, especially those involved in a business relation.

He could feel Chanyeol's fingers dig into his skin but thankfully their grip didn't exceed their previous tightness, there was a sustainable amount of pressure being placed onto both his hip and hand but Baekhyun allowed it to ground him. He stood up from Chanyeol's lap and cleared his throat, halting Suho in his rant, Baekhyun offered the man a smile before stating very calmly.

"I understand that in business related matters that more luxurious finger food would probably be the go too right? I also want to clarify that even though I am Chanyeol's mate I don't plan on phasing you out of your role as a superior family member, you're my mate's Appa and he holds you very dear to his heart and therefore I do too. I may have to step up and accept the position that is presented because it is related to the position Chanyeol will be receiving in the future, that I will openingly agree to due to my faith in him and in the faith I have in myself in regards to my feelings towards your son. I don't have a family to call my own as I'm sure you're aware, I would very much like to consider myself a part of your family but I will not allow myself to fight for a place which claims that I am not welcome. My loyalty relates to Chanyeol and Chanyeol only, we can continue having this serious conversation about sandwiches or we can move along and perhaps discuss another topic of conversation."

The kitchen had gotten so quiet that Baekhyun was certain that a fork dropping would create an earthquake, he didn't regret his words as the silence drew on for another couple moments. He felt as though he had matched Suho's ignorance and settled himself in a place with the elder's mind for respect, if he gets it is another thing but at least Baekhyun could say that he had spoken out for himself. Something that didn't happen quite often.

"Damn." Nana's sweet voice was a little on the deeper side right now, but he quickly realised that it was simply because she had kept open for so long and hadn't swallowed recently. "I'm proud of you kid, you did great!"

Katherine seemed to be the only one that managed to break out of the trance of absolute shock, she returned to chopping up the ingredients she was going to include in Baekhyun's sandwich. She offered him a kind smile, pulling a plate from the overhanging cabinet before turning back to him.

"May I ask you a question?" She wondered, placing two slices of bread down on the plate. Baekhyun nodded his head, too desperate to wet his throat after his lengthy retort back to Suho. The orange juice was bitter against his tongue but it settled his nerves just enough to handle whatever question was thrown at him from Chanyeol's Eomma. "You said earlier that you had no family of your own. I wanted to ask how you pay for your education, Chanyeol also says that you have your own apartment-"

"How is this revelovant to anything?" Suho questioned, turning to look the woman in the eye. Katherine's jaw hangs open in a loss of words, her stammering making Baekhyun's brain turn to mush.

"Seriously?" Nana deadpanned, waving a hand in front of her clueless son's eyes. "The guy who got annoyed over sandwiches is telling off the woman who asked a generally curious question? What has gone wrong with the world?"

"My education was paid for by the nuns of my orphanage, they taught me how to budget and look after my finances. My friend Lay helped me get a job in his friend's coffee place and I'm able to survive off my paycheck from there, I don't invest much time into much apart from my painting and my book collection but that's about it."

"You never told us about your book collection!" Kyungsoo gasped, allowing himself to be pulled onto Jongin's lap. "Tell us about it!"

"Oh it's nothing much!" Baekhyun was quick to reassure him, getting a little embarrassed about it himself. "I only have compiled short stories of myths and legends for my paintings, nothing too fancy although I do have a fascination with the classics like Shakespeare, Brontay, Gatsby the lists really just go on."

"What has been your most recent painting?" Katherine gushed, walking carefully over with the plate in her hand. She gently rested it down on the countertop in front of Baekhyun who felt his cheeks heat up at the reminder of the painting he had made when he was supposed to be sleeping last night.

"I'm not really sure," he admitted even though to him he knew the lie entangled in the web of words. "this particular one is a lot different from my usual ones. I haven't drawn a direct comparison to any particular myth but maybe one day I will allow you to see it and make that judgement for yourself."

"Let's hope that day comes soon!" Katherine gushed, a happy smile on her lips the entire time.