Chapter Six; 

      The Replacement

A/N: sorry, due to the request of a certain individual, one of the character's name has been changed to Sooyang. Thanks for all the comments and subscribers!!!

The minutes that flew by were less than comforting in the local café. Xiumin casually took a sip of his coffee, trying to ignore the bitter gaze that was directed to him. However, every now and again he would catch himself stealing glances, only to see his half-brother display a rather unpleasant demeanour. Nothing had changed, he concluded. People may age, yet their personalities would forever be intact.

“We haven’t talked or seen each other for three years. Today, you called…for this?”

Xiumin rubbed his temples with a sigh. He never enjoyed the company of his brother, and vice-versa. Conversations were always difficult between them since it always led to a somewhat frivolous argument. Even with such a complicated relationship with his brother, Xiumin still felt compelled to meet him after those three years, not because he missed him, of course.

“I can’t think of any other way. If I could, I wouldn’t ask for such a ridiculous request either.”

“She’s not insane.” He chuckled mockingly, before his smile dropped within a split second. “You are.”

“Maybe it’s fate,” Xiumin croaked. He’d made no plans in deny his offence, since he too, had wondered whether he was insane. His proposition was ridiculous even to his own ears.

“You don’t love her.” He spoke insensitively as he shook their head. To Xiumin, those words were as sharp as shattered glass that were piercing through his flesh, trying to get to his heart with pieces of fragments scattered across the surface of his skin. If words could kill, those were the ones that would send Xiumin to his grave.  

“It’s because I love her that I’m doing this! If I had a choice, I would never choose this.” He sighed despondently, to which his brother merely scoffed.

“Then what about me?! Have you ever thought about me when you devised this plan of yours?! Hyung, even though we don’t share the same mother, I’m still your brother!”

Xiumin looked into those fiery eyes of his, guilt instantly clutching his heart. True, they never got along, but it didn’t mean they neglected the fact they were blood-related. Their bond was weak, yet by no means non-existent.

“I’m sorry. B-but, what were the chances? Maybe it was meant to be. Look at this.” He shoved his mobile in front of his face. “You guys have never met before, yet she was able to draw your face!”

His brother observed the image on the screen showing the said picture. Unfortunately, he could not disagree the similarities shared between himself and the image displayed, hence he could only huff in a disgruntled manner.

“In case you’ve forgotten, I’d like to remind you that I too, have a life. I don’t sit around in the corner and wait for you to pull me just to get involved in some kind of scheme to trick your fiancée. I have no reason to participate in your scam, especially when I can’t benefit from it.”

“What if you do?”

Back in the household of the spectacular creatures, Luhan once again found himself dangling upside down from the doorframe, accompanied by Lay’s unicorn. They made no attempts to communicate, yet somehow just being together was more than satisfying for them. Luhan was never bored when he was with the elegant creature.

“Not going anywhere today?” Sehun asked, suddenly appearing before the two.

“Today is a special day. I have no reason to go,” Luhan simply replied. “It’s rather boring. Lay’s off to work, but that’s quite alright; he left me a friend.”

The spirit glanced at the unicorn beside him with a puzzling look.

“But you two don’t talk. Can she talk?” He leaned closer to the creature, examining it with bewildered eyes. Curiosity was finally getting the better of him. He was always inquisitive; he just refused to show it.

“You tried so hard, Sehun. In the end, you choose to reveal your curious side, huh?” Luhan let out a soft laugh. “Though no words are shared, no thoughts could be read, there’s something else between us; mutual understanding.”

“Understanding of what?”

“Rather than being curious over me, shouldn’t you be curious over how to get rid of your curse?”

The spirit’s eyes became dull at the mention of his curse, as if all energy had been out of him. His back slouched lazily as he floated around the room.  

“I finally ask questions because quite frankly, I’ve given up. Why would it matter if I’m attached to you guys? I like being in this house. Besides, I can’t even remember what it felt like to be alive. What if I’m not meant to live again? I don’t even have a reason to live. I can’t remember anything.”

“You shouldn’t give up; not when your heart still remembers. I’ve looked into your curse with Lay. To remove it, we need to find three people.”

“Who?” Sehun stopped, focusing all his attention on Luhan.

“The person who placed that curse one you, a person who loves you unconditionally but aren’t blood related, and then…someone who’d be willing to share a mind with you.”

“What?” Sehun stared at him as if he was speaking in riddles or even a foreign language.

“You’d be surprised. The third person would be the most difficult to find. Even if a person loves you, sharing a mind is possibly one of the scariest things ever. Lay wasn’t too happy about finding the third person. You might have to search yourself.”

The spirit was about to pester him with another one of his questions, but was disrupted by a screech from the living room.

“WHY ARE YOU FORCING ME?! JUST DISAPPEAR AND GO BACK TO THE SHADOW REALM!” They both recognised the voice to be none other than their beloved prince. Sehun’s jaw dropped at Baekhyun’s booming voice. The prince had always had the best temperament amongst them, yet ever since the arrival of Sooyang, the average decibels in the house had risen tremendously, all thanks to him.

Luhan chortled at the young spirit’s reaction.

“Don’t be too surprised. They’ll be quite all right.”

Xiumin pinched her cheeks whilst he led her through the doors. His loving gaze still fixed on her, and she couldn’t help but blush at his actions. He pulled her to one of the tables that was already occupied by someone. She was about to tell him to choose another one to sit on, when Xiumin stretched his arms out as if he wanted to present her to the stranger.

“See? This is Kai. I told you I’ve met him!” Her face brightened at the thought and a sense of relief flowed throughout her body.

“My name is actually Kim Jongin!” He protested, shooting a harsh glare towards him, only to earn a nudge from Xiumin’s elbow. “…but I’m also known as Kai by many.” He straightened his jacket before reaching a hand for her to shake. She shook his hand, yet her gaze never left his face.

She tilted her head in amazement.

“You’re…real?” Her forehead creased, scanning Jongin from head to toe.

“Pretty much.”

“You do look like him,” she trailed in a whisper. “But it’s strange.”

The two brothers stared at her questioningly.

“What’s strange? Maybe you were just seeing things…like a vision. You two were fated to meet! What were the chances, right?” Xiumin laughed, yet immediately stopped when she showed no reactions.

“The feeling isn’t the same.”