# 8

Magician
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Donghae managed it. He squeezed in more work the previous evening.

It's because Hyukjae had called him. From the Parks.

"Mama Saeron wants me to stay for dinner! Do you want to come and have fun with us here? Please?"

Donghae reluctantly declined. He had to finish his work.

This meant "fun times!!" was cancelled too.

Hyukjae returned home at night. Just as Donghae was completing his last drawing.

He's just gone over everything again. Sent in his drawn scenes. He's now waiting for approval. To proceed. After that... he'll have to find the right time. To go to that national park with Hyukjae. He chews his lip. His eyes scan the days on the calendar.

Hyukjae steps out of the kitchen. He's holding a mug with both hands. He sees Donghae. Blinks. Smiles.

"Baby, I got you a coffeeee..."

Donghae holds out his hand. Hyukjae walks carefully. Places the mug on his desk. Stands back. Folds his hands behind.

"What?" Donghae says. Pouts at him. He tries to reach. Take Hyukjae's sleeve. Hyukjae shifts further.

"You have to do your work, Hae..."

"I did!"

"You're done?"

"Well, for now."

Hyukjae looks at his desk. At him. At the calendar. Then back at him.

"Okay," he says. Steps closer. Leans in to press a kiss to his lips. Donghae takes his arm. Hyukjae resists. Slips away. Thins his mouth. He folds his hands behind again.

"Hyukkie..." Donghae grumbles.

"You're gonna make me sit on your lap..."

"So? I like that. I thought you liked it too. I haven't had the coffee so kissing is okay..."

"Yes, but I can't sit on your lap and do kissing now because my will get hard--"

Donghae rolls his eyes. "We're at home, it's okay."

"Yes, but you have to work and then I'll be crying and dealing with it myself."

Donghae laughs. He grabs Hyukjae's sleeve again. Pulls him over his legs. He hugs his waist. Holds him securely. He looks up.

"You know I'll always make time for you," Donghae says. Kisses him gently.

Hyukjae's eyes get a twinkle in them. He smiles. Cups Donghae's face. Meets his lips again. The kiss is soft. Warm.

"But you shouldn't always need to..."

"That's sweet, baby," Donghae murmurs. He places short kisses on Hyukjae's plump lips. His lower cheek. "Thank you, but it's okay now... I'm not working..."

"B-But I gotta go see Mama Saeron soon," Hyukjae says. He shifts slightly on Donghae's legs. The desk stops him. From getting too far. "And I don't want to go there thinking about you and rubbing our because what if I get hard--"

Donghae covers his mouth. Turns to look at the calendar. Frowns.

"You're not seeing her today, baby. It's tomorrow. Besides, you went to see her yesterday."

Hyukjae turns Donghae's face. "She needed me, so I had to."

"Oh," Donghae says. He'd been too focused on work. Even after Hyukjae got home. "Is she okay?"

Hyukjae glances away. "Yeah... but I should see her again..."

Donghae realizes. He might've missed something. Last night. Donghae went to bed soon after he was finished. Hyukjae had already been yawning. Waiting for him.

"Baby... is everything okay with the Parks?"

Hyukjae meets his eyes again. He nods. Slowly.

"Actually..." Hyukjae says. Then turns his head. Points. "Hae! That's your phone!"

It is. On the table far away. It's vibrating.

"Ignore it. I'm not supposed to touch it during work hours--"

"You're not working--"

"I'm at my desk, so it's work space, so I'm working--"

"Hae, it could be something important!"

Hyukjae removes his hands. Wiggles his bum off him. Scurries towards his phone. Donghae stands up. Hyukjae's eyes have widened.

"Is it Teukkie?" Donghae says. Worried now. "Mr. Park?"

"No..." Hyukjae hurries back. Holds his phone to him. "Is that your brother?"

"Oh, it's Misoon..." Donghae murmurs. It's usually his brother calling him. Now Donghae notices texts. From Donghwa. That he missed. The call stops. "Wait, let's see..."

"Heyy can you let the kids see you and talk to you for a bit? Misoon has an urgent meeting and I need to finish cooking..."

"What is it?" Hyukjae says. He's peering at Donghae's phone. Trying to read. "Who is this?"

Donghae quickly texts his brother back. "Sure! I'll call back in a minute."

"Who are you calling? Should I go read? I need to be quiet, right?"

Donghae brings an arm around him. Kisses his cheek.

"No, it's alright. Hana and RaeRae want to talk to me. Do you want to speak to them--"

Hyukjae gasps. Holds his own face.

"Heey, it's okay," Donghae says. "They're just kids, Hyukkie, and it's just video -- you don't have to if you can't. I just thought Hana would probably want to say hi or see you, because I told her about you. You can pretend to be busy, baby, it's totally okay--"

"Should I read a book? I was reading an inappropriate book so I'll grab another one! Oh, do I sit here? Should I sit like this? Oh no, should I change my clothes? Should I go on your laptop? B-But I still don't know how to use it--"

Donghae stops him. Sits on the couch. Takes his hand. Pulls him down.

"Relax, sweetheart," he says. "You do

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Author's Thoughts
sujul33
Wanted to add some Hyukjae POV.
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OdetteSwan 935 streak #1
Chapter 19: He's trying to find his purpose now that he isn't restrained.
Thank you so much for the update.
yanHae15 144 streak #2
Chapter 19: Oh! Hi! It's been a while! I miss them!
But Hyukkie is sad and struggling. I hope he doesn't see what they're doing for him as something negative. They do it with pur intentions and so, if there's any problem, it will be better to communicate. He shouldn't keep everything to himself 🥹🥹
fullofwish 1547 streak #3
Chapter 19: Hyukjae is struggling with so much. Seems like he feels bad whether he keeps it to himself or shares it, so it's understandable he's not sure what the best thing to do is. He and Donghae are really so considerate of each other, to a fault. Half of the issue is that they just want to please the other person at the possible expense of what they themselves want. Not sharing the things that are unpleasant. Hyuk now has more awareness and is worried that's what Donghae is always doing, but he is doing it too by not really sharing his true concerns. Worried Donghae will feel more responsible or burdened to find a solution for him.

Still think they can work through things best together, though. At least, Hyukjae seems more lost and afloat when he retreats into his lonely mind and the insidious draw of more powerful magic between the difficult memories and realizations. Even though Hyuk is better at self-regulating than he was when he would literally transform to protect himself whenever overwhelmed or threatened, he still needs trustworthy people to keep him grounded and remind him to tread safely, and Donghae has been that constant person he needed for a while. Maybe Hyukkie needs to express the things he needs that are different now, if that's the case. Like Donghae being more open with his own wants and needs instead of only prioritizing Hyukjae.
HelenDamnation #4
Chapter 19: Well from the sound of it, it may be the only parenting he got growing up was the time with Hazel. The rest of the time there's a whole lot of trauma he needs to recover from on top of his entire world basically having disappeared.

He's very helpful and considerate. He seems to be having trouble that realizing that is actually worth a lot. But he's at the age, isn't he, based on your notes, to be thinking that if he doesn't do something big then none of it counts. It would probably help if somebody explained to everyone in this story that constantly treating someone like they're fragile and about to break into a million pieces is going to be destructive to their mental health, even when you mean in the best way possible. :-)
ldh2013 #5
Chapter 19: Everytime Hyukjae felt threatened, he retreated into becoming a mannequin. It's no wonder that everyone, especially Donghae, has been trying really hard to make sure he feels safe. Being constantly worried over can be trying and Hyukjae appears to be feeling guilty about it. Adapting to the current world isn't that easy. Technically, Hyukjae doesn't have that much experience living (not being a manniquin). I think his only "work" experience was ever as a helper but the people around him now don't really "need" him to help them.
HelenDamnation #6
Chapter 18: So Hyukjae feels like he doesn't belong where he is, which is natural to have to process...but then in MM&YxMagician, he finds out there are DonghaexHyukjae couples everywhere he looks...so maybe that'll help? Help him feel he's where he's supposed to be?

Edit: I really, really like how you're showing some things many people experience that rarely get talked about in fiction, if ever. Like the sense of grief and loss when you get old enough to realize that you can't actually read all the books there are or learn all the things, much less do them fast enough. Or the fact that there's a lot to do with where you really can't fully imagine how it feels until you try it, which can create some shocks, both good and bad ones -- I've never seen that covered in conventional publishing (or at least only the ic surprises, never the reverse). I've been reading fanfiction for less than two years, but I'm constantly impressed at how fanfiction authors just go right ahead and cover what is missing from print media that really needs to be said and portrayed.
kiwicolada 1608 streak #7
Chapter 18: And here I'm sitting and thought that Hyukkie already coped amazingly with his past. I really thought he was fine living in the present, with Donghae and the Parks. That he's still suffering inside and feels lost in place is sad to read. Thinking about it, he lost so many time while he was surviving as mannequin during the centuries. And when we think twice there must be a century old between him and Hae. No wonder he feels out of time. But he did so well and everyone made sure to tell him this. But sometimes it's normal to feel this way, not belonging to this place and time when we think where Hyukjae's coming from.

I'm amazed that Hyukkie could feel Hae's biggest fear. That he could turn into a mannequin again. This shows how strong their bond is. Even the century old . A deep and strong love. As if they're destined to each other. Like it was his fate to sleep as mannequin until he could meet Donghae. Aside from all the horrible experiences Hyukkie did in the former century, I like the idea that Hyukkie and Hae were meant to be. But the deep sadness in Hyukkie is hard to handle for Donghae. The thing is Donghae can do what he wants, he can't heal Hyukjae from this sadness. Not alone. And deep inside there will always be a tiny piece of sadness that will reminds Hyukkie's that he's a surprise from another century.

It's been a while a chapter went so deep. Thank you for writing and sharing this ❤️
fullofwish 1547 streak #8
Chapter 18: So curious (worried) about what Teukie is worried about. Hope it is just because Hyuk sent him some possibly weird or sad texts before and not anything more.

The way Hyukkie's feeling is understandable. He's always so bright and energetic, but the more he grows and learns the more he comes to terms with reality. How could he not feel out of place? He's literally from the past, with magic no one else (that we know of) has, and has a lot of uncertainty still. It must feel so lonely and hard, no matter much Donghae and the Parks love and take care of him. It's no one's fault. It will just take time and patience for Hyukjae to figure things out and really find his place. To not be so harsh on himself for not being good at everything right away. As much as it breaks Donghae's heart to see him upset and struggling, it's a relief he's opening up about this.

♡
Kethryveris #9
Chapter 18: Hyuk, s'inquiète et se sent mal, j'espère que Hae va vite lui rendre sa joie de vivre. Merci 💙
kiwicolada 1608 streak #10
Chapter 17: Hyukkie is such a sweetheart. All concerned about the safety of Donghae's work. Even kisses have no priority in that moment. What a cute weatherman. And Donghae is all happy and forgot about that horrible night before. This is how their trip should be. I like this chapter a lot ❤️ Thank you for sharing and a belated happy new year ^^
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