“You’re back!” I exclaimed, clapping my hands together. Running down the hallway, I surprised Kevin with a sudden hug and felt his arms wrap around my waist slowly. “Heh.” I smiled, looking up towards him and my smile faded when he stared back at me, with such a sad smile. “Kevin?” I took one step backwards and observed his expression. “What’s the matter, yeobo?” He shook his head and replaced his former smile with a rather bright one;

“Nothing, baby. I’m just beat.” He stretched upwards and let out a small yawn. “I’m going to go to my room and take a small nap, alright, babe?”

I nodded slowly and watched him drag his feet, until he went up the stairs. Where did he go off to anyways? Maybe he’s slightly stressed for some reason… Has Chanyeol been bothering him too much over the training? Hm.

[Kevin’s POV]

Damn it. Damn it. I paced back and forth in my bedroom and tangled my fingers in my hair. How… How do I tell her? Ugh Sunghyun, let’s just sleep it out and we’ll figure it out later. Placing my hands on the bottom of my shirt, I lift it off my upper body. I shivered, due to the cold breeze of the room. 

Knock. Knock. Hm?

My head turns towards the door and there she was. I smiled every time I see her, it’s an automatic reaction. “Kevin…?” She called out carefully, poking her head through the opening of the door. I smiled and replied; “Yes, ____?”

“Can I come in for a second?” She asked, pouting cutely. I couldn’t help but smile. She was just too cute. With her long hair pulled back into a cute bun and her cute rosy cheeks… How could I spend an entire year away from her? How did I even live without meeting her? Love does change people and perspectives in mysterious ways. “Kevin?” She called out again.

“Oh. Yeah.” I scratched the back of my head and gestured for her to come in. She dragged her feet and stood right in front of me.

“Here.” I looked down and stared at the mug in between her petite hands. I grabbed it with both hands and nodded with gratitude.  The warm mug between my hands for some reason filled me with sadness. I... I stared at her and I must have given her a bad expression because she immediately nodded apologetically and whispered; “I’ll leave you alone to nap.. Sorry for bothering you.” I wanted to stop her but she was already out the door.

“O-Oh.” She poked her head in again and whispered: “If... You know, if there’s something wrong, you could speak to me about it, you know. If it makes you feel better. I mean… I’m your girlfriend and your friend, so... You could always depend on me. I’ll go now. Byebye!” She waved and quickly ran back to her room, her small footsteps paced quite quickly and stopped as her bedroom door made quite a loud sound. I closed my eyes shut and rubbed my forehead with a free hand. I sipped onto the mug, and tasted the sweet tea. Ginseng tea. I tasted the honey and felt relaxed although it didn’t last long, the thoughts of telling her what I thought was good enough to do, meaning that I would have to end up separating when we’ve finally got each other.  Letting myself fall on the bed, I decided to just fall asleep. Never thought sleeping could be so hard to do.

[Your POV]

I swung my feet back and forth on the bed. Slowly, my hands made its way to my neck and cringed as I felt the bruised pain.  I haven’t told Kevin but... every time... the bruises on my neck… The person that kept causing these bruises in my dreams was him but his smirk... it didn’t belong to him. That voice, it didn’t belong to him.

Croaaaak. I looked towards the window and the same crow was there. Little did I know, I screamed.

“_______!” Rapid footsteps came up until I was in Kevin’s arms. “Shh. It’s alright, baby.” My hands trembled its way to his arm as I tried to relax my breathing. “Baby. It’s alright. It’s okay. It’s gone now, baby. I’m here.” I nodded rapidly and held him near. That crow’s eyes were the same crimson red as the ones in my dreams. Crows signify death. You can’t blame me for being scared. Every day, the nightmares gradually become worse and become frequent. How am I supposed to chase them away? “I… I want to see Lay.” I whispered.

Kevin let go and kneeled on the floor as I sat on the edge of the bed. He remained in thought and finally asked the reason why.

“Do you think he would know how to heal me? Could it be something wrong with me? Could he know?” Kevin stared at the window and seemed unsure.

“Let’s try this.” Kevin murmured. He sat beside me and placed his right palm on my forehead as his other hand rested with my hand. “Breathe in.” I did as I was told and felt sudden warmth all over my body, a peaceful light filled my mind. I opened my eyes and stared at my boyfriend’s hand and stared at the small charm. “Wh-what’s that?”  I asked him, eyeing the small charm. The small charm was a small cute bottle with a bright light inside. The bottle was secured with a cork and a red ribbon.

“Something Ren taught me. I told him about the nightmares and the occasional bruises..” He explained. “He said… it could possibly be one of the dark spirits that Erian must have triggered before getting cuffed. Although… it could also be a lingering dark aura that just wishes to punish us for sealing their master. This charm…” His hands fiddled with the bottle. “Was made by Ren’s asterisks power and my own. It’s made out of.. well, asterisk energy and memories.”

“Memories?” I asked curiously. He smiled and nodded.

“When you hold it close and close your eyes. The good and happy memories that you remember  will flash through and… you’d be able to hear me.”

“Hear you?”  I stared at the charm bottle and wonder how in the world I could hear him from this…

“You.. you could hear my lullabies and so, when you hold this close and concentrate on the energy within the glass bottle.” He smiled. He placed it in my hands and folded my fingers over it. I smiled at his thoughtfulness and pecked his lips lovingly.

“I love you.” I whispered.

“I love you too. So much.” Kevin whispered, he smiled sadly and squeezed my hands. “Which… which… which is why, I need to do this.”

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion and I scooted closer towards him, facing him, both of us, sitting across from each other on the bed, both our legs crossed, our knees in contact. I placed the charm in my pocket and held his slender hands.

“Do what?” I fiddled with his long fingers.

“I… I need to undergo training.”

My heart froze. My whole body froze. Under..undergo training? I stared at him and felt my eyes become watery. I wiped my eyes with my long sleeve before the tears could fall. “W-why?” I croaked out.

“_____. You know how I love you, right?” I nodded and let him continue. “I love you so much.  And to protect you from harm, from these dark spirits, I… I can’t protect you merely with my bare…human hands. I need to undergo the training Lay and Chanyeol wish to provide me so then I could protect you. So then, I won’t have to risk every losing you. If I ever lose you, knowing that I could have gone through the training and didn’t, I would never forgive myself. Ever.  I need to do this. It isn’t easy to leave you. It will never be.”

My throat felt like it was clogged. I couldn’t… I couldn’t speak. But I understand where he comes from. I mean, I thought that being with Eli was the best way, thinking that Kevin doesn’t deserve some burden like myself. I thought I was saving him the burden and everything would be right with Eli. But… One year? Possibly more? Can I handle that? Without thinking, I muttered;

“It isn’t your job to fight against these dark whatever-they-are. Kevin, you didn’t choose to be a Starlite. It is not your job, at all. Kevin, you’re not some super hero! You… you… you’re different from other Starlites. You can’t just regenerate easily like others. You risk death even more than others. I’ll lose you.”

Kevin stared at the window and looked back with a conflicted reaction:

“Babe.  Yeah, I didn’t choose this path but… if fate wants me to become a Starlite, shouldn’t I fulfill its potential and take the best of it? I mean.. what will happen if.. those dark spirits… I want to protect you. Protect our children, protect ou---“

“W-Wait. Children?” I stared at him, wide-eyed. “Ch-children, Kevin?” Kevin’s face turned into a bright red and he looked away.

“U-Uh.” He stuttered.

“We’ve just been dating for a few days…and… you’re thinking about children?” I fluttered my eyes and stared at him amusingly. His cheeks were a of a rosy pink and he chuckled awkwardly;

“S-Sorry. I… Is that weird? My bad.” He coughed. I pecked his cheek and smiled sweetly;

“It’s not weird. It’s sweet. But... let’s take things slow.. can we?” I laughed, and wiped my eyes. He really wants to undergo the training, doesn’t he…? He’s so stubborn, there’s no way, that he’d change his mind. I sighed heavily and took out the charm out of my pocket, gripping onto the bottle.  “Do... Do you really want to undergo the training?” I felt my voice tremble as I tried to ask him that question.

“I want to.” He looked back at me with concerned yet determined eyes; “I’m willing to protect you and to do that, I need to do this. _____, I need to.” He was almost pleading. I nodded slowly and stared back at him.

“When will you be starting?”

“Whenever I tell Chanyeol and Lay that I’m ready to.” He explained. “The sooner, I do it, the faster, I’ll be back home.”

“Could.. could you come visit me during training?” I asked him curiously. He shook his head sadly and explained;

“For some reason, they don’t want me to. But.. I promise I will call from time to time. Just... think of it as a small…uh. As if you are waiting for an U-KISS come back! Yeah! A U-KISS COMEBACK!” He smiled excitedly. I growled and hit his chest. “Ow.” He winced.

“I’m not waiting for a comeback I’m waiting for you, my boyfriend!” I snapped. He apologized and held me close, so close, you could hear his heartbeat. “This is going to be a very long wait, Kevin-ah. And you’re telling me I can’t even see you once?” He rested his head on my head and felt him shrug.

“That’s what they told me. I promise I will call you from time to time. I promise… But. Could you promise me something?”

“What?” I leaned my head against the crook of his neck and closed my eyes as I listened and cherished his voice.

“Study in Korea when I come back?” He asked. I pulled away and stared at him.

“What?” I asked, shocked.

“Let’s study in Korea together. Come on. When everything is finished. When my one year is finished. Study in Korea. Please. Not only will I be close to U-KISS, I’ll be able to be with you.”

“What about my parents, Kevin?”

“You’ll be 18 by then. They’d be obligated to let you go. You’re an adult; you’ll be able to choose your path.”

“That’s not what I meant! I need them with me too, Kevin.”

“Well, it’s still a year. You… think about it. Come on. You’ve never visited where your parents came from, haven’t you?” I shook my head and just stared back at Kevin. “Then. Give South Korea a try. You’ll love it there. When I finish, I’ll need to visit U-KISS, I miss them so much. And… I want them to meet you. I want them to know who my girl is.” He explained.

Ah. So, it wasn’t to just study. He wants me to meet U-KISS. Hm.

“I’ve already met one of them.” I said quietly, referring to Eli. He cringed but before he could say anything, I said. “He probably hates me.”

Kevin shook his head; “No. _____, I’m sure he understands.”

Hm.

“So, will you?” Kevin squeezed my two arms and then lifted my chin.

“I’ll think about it, baby.” I whispered. I pecked his lips and held him. “I don’t want to let go. Don’t leave. Not now. Please stay just a bit longer.” I closed my eyes shut tightly. He squeezed me tightly and whispered;

“Alright. I will. I’ll leave when you’re ready. I… How about me go on a date before I go? A special one? Before I leave?”

I nodded in his chest and didn’t dare to let him go.

[Kevin’s POV]

Her soft snores filled the space between us. Her head still rested against my chest. Telling her was harder than I thought.  I had to keep myself from actually tearing up. We needed one person here to be strong. And I managed to pretend to be that one person. I kissed her chocolate brown hair, I smiled at the scent of her strawberry shampoo.  We got to do something special, before I go. I hope she considers coming to South Korea. I smiled and rested my head against the pillow.

Kissing her forehead, I sang a lullaby one last time.

---

Author's Note:

Hm. So. The sequel is coming... really quickly. LOL. I'd say one more chapter before the end of this first part? IOANLVNAO. I know right Can't believe it. Chapter 40, .. I'll try to make that the cover for the Sequel. Omo~ So, Kevin is planning something special before he leaves. What should he do? Oh, and should ______ go to South Korea? Would you take on his promise and go to South Korea? Let me know! love, ./K