✉ a ripple in the water 

Rin finally manages to find him, a lone figure resting at the edge of the city on a precarious cliff overlooking the sea. She is used to seeing his warm brown eyes curiously roaming his surroundings. Now, however, they are as icy and tumultuous as the water below, a harsh color compared to his usual disposition, and it is highly unsettling. It is frightening enough that she takes a step back and clutches herself shakily. The emotions she feels coming from him are strong and dangerous, and they invade her head without mercy. He doesn't seem to have noticed her presence, even though her fear is palpable in the cold night air. He doesn't seem to notice her, even if her hands are shaking and she's walking towards him and her breaths are harsh against the biting wind. He doesn't notice her, and that is enough to let a feeling of panic settle into her gut.

One glance from him is enough to validate that he does, in fact, know that she is there. But it is as quick as it had come, and she thought that it would provide her some sort of relief; his cold gaze does the exact opposite. He remains quiet.

She lets herself slightly relax into the tense silence until his mouth opens. Her eyes widen a fraction as she waits for what he is about to say with bated breath.

"I just don't know what to do with you!" he bites out angrily.

Rin hadn't expected the sudden outburst. She flinches and takes a small step back, half expecting him to lash out at her while the other half of her is expecting him to break down in tears.

However, as she prods deeper into their connection, all she sees is red. She refuses to look him in the eyes, instead opting to put all of her attention onto her boots, observing the worn laces and the scuffs that litter their surface. He is angry, and this frightens her, for she has never seen him angry. At least, she has never seen him angry at her before. It's foreign and uncomfortable to know that his rage is meant for her. It leaves a horrible feeling in her stomach, and it settles there in the most agonizing way. Rin reaches out towards him. The glare he sends her way makes her stop and almost cry out in pain.

Baekhyun's voices dies down to a low tremble as he whispers, "You're always pushing me away. You're always pushing everyone away. What are we doing wrong? What did that boy do to you, Rin?"

Rin purses her lips. Her fists clench, her knuckles turn white, and the last thing she wants to think about is him.

 "Don't you dare talk about him. I told you to never speak of him," she replies tersely.

He ignores her and instead gets up from his sitting position, striding towards her with purpose. She flinches as he grabs her shoulders in a vice-like grip, preventing her from escaping. She has always hated feeling restricted, and she glares at him, but it only makes his grip even tighter. She growls.

"Is he the reason you're like this? Is he the reason you're so afraid to get hurt?"

Rin doesn't say anything. She wrenches out of his grasp and quickly strides away, her heart beating quickly. She hasn't even apologized, and her conscience is telling her to turn around and fix things, but she is a coward. She has always been a coward. Her breath is harsh as she worries her lower lip, and a lone tear manages to slip down her cheek.

She suddenly stops when she can feel Baekhyun's desperation, prodding into their connection and slowly seeping into her veins, draining all her emotions until all that's left is guilt.

"You can't just leave me," he chokes out.

"Please stop talking, Baekhyun," she replies, just as broken. Rin knows that all she has to do is apologize. She can turn around right now and say she's sorry with all her heart and then he would smile because he's just that easygoing. And then they would laugh about it, forget about it, forgive each other, and they'd go home with light hearts and smiles on their faces. But Rin is too stubborn for things to work out the way they should.

"Look at me, Rin," he whispers, coming closer. Rin feels his breath at the back of her neck. She shivers.

Baekhyun cautiously places his hand on her shoulder, gently coaxing her into facing him. He is not prepared for what he sees next.

She looks into his eyes, and he jolts backwards, not because he is frightened or surprised, but because he is so struck by passion and love that his body can't contain it and his heart is bursting and yes, he is in love with her.

He is in love with her.

Shocked by this sudden realization -- partly because he was so angry at her just minutes ago, and partly because he thought he had only liked her -- he blinks a few times and his lips out of nervousness. Rin is looking at him strangely and it's probably because he looks so bewildered and afraid and oh my god, he feels so vulnerable. How did this happen? He wants to give everything to her. Everything he has, everything he will have, every single fiber of his being is hers. He is hers, but her heart belongs to someone else. This thought plants itself in his feeble heart and takes root in the cracks that have developed over the years, breaking him even more. Baekhyun almost wants to laugh, because while this love is repairing him, it is also breaking him.

Refusing to look at her out of fear that the blush on his cheeks will give him away, Baekhyun takes her hand and leads her away from the cliff and back to the city streets. He curses at himself for suddenly feeling so shy. He is so flustered, and Rin probably knows, and he panics because she probably knows. She can probably feel it. The emotion is so strong within him; what more would it be with their connection?

But Rin doesn’t notice it at all. She is too shocked at his sudden change in demeanor that she can’t seem to pay attention to anything except for his hand holding hers. His grip is firm and the warmth of his fingers makes her chest throb. She hasn’t felt this way since…since… She can’t even think about it. She doesn’t dare recall his face in her mind.

The connection between the two transmits her unease to Baekhyun. Misinterpreting it as being because of him, he quickly retracts his hand. Oh my gosh, how embarrassing, Baekhyun thinks. Was he already taking things too fast? Are his hands sweaty? Maybe she just hates him. He stops walking and waits in a panic, wondering what she’ll say.

“Baekhyun…why’d you let go?” she asks softly, reaching her hand out to him shyly.

Baekhyun can’t reply to her question. He’s simply surprised that her response was the opposite of what he had expected. After all, he had treated her so harshly before, and all of a sudden he was acting sweet… He thought that she would at least yell at him or something, like she usually does. Maybe his love-struck aura is rubbing off on her. After all, their connection is warm and buzzing, like an electric current. It’s never felt like this before. Baekhyun has to admit that he’s a bit thrilled. He smiles warmly and takes her hand again.

Rin is too embarrassed to smile back. What the heck… This is way too mushy for her. The fact that their connection flows over her like honey is not making it better. She can’t take it. She has to look away and clear to compose herself, but she gives herself away too easily by the tight grip she has on his hand.

She needs to distract herself or she’ll let herself get carried away. It already feels like she’s floating on a cloud.

“I almost forgot! We need to get the package verified before we set out to deliver it.”

It is standard procedure to have a package stamped at the Post Office before setting out on a mission. Messengers deliver dangerous packages all the time, so it is especially important to keep track of packages to make sure that they are successfully delivered. This system is particularly meaningful to Messengers because it ensures that they get their paycheck.

After the Path Wars, the Post Office was created as a way to appease all sides. In a way, Messengers are above the law because they are allowed to deliver packages to all sorts of people. While they mostly carry out government jobs, Messengers are also known to venture to the territories of clans like the Red Foxes and Golden Dragons. Obviously, such clans are not known for carrying out the most legal of activities, and so the packages they receive aren’t the most legal of items.

At the mention of the package, Rin feels a rush of cold as Baekhyun’s mood immediately sours.

“Rin… This mission is going to be extremely dangerous. We’re talking about the Red Foxes here.”

“You’re talking to me like I’ve never gone on a dangerous mission before. I’m not the top Messenger for nothing, you know.”

“I know that, but…from what I’ve heard, the Red Foxes are savages.”

“I guess we’ll find out how savage we are once they reach them.”

Baekhyun doesn’t find her joke funny. His grip on her hand tightens and his mouth sets into a firm line. Rin looks at him apologetically. His concern for her flows through her, making her feel both thankful and embarrassed at how much he cared for her.

“Baekhyun, I know you’re concerned, but you know that I’m not going to back down from something like this.”

“I know that, and that’s why I’m scared,” Baekhyun whispers, his eyes boring into hers. That signature puppy face appears once again. Rin huffs and looks away. If she stares at him any longer she might just actually throw away the mission.

“I’m going to bring that package to the Red Foxes,” she declares firmly.

Baekhyun can only shake his head, but he acquiesces. He doesn’t want to ruin the night any further. Besides, he’s her Guardian now. If she’s going to go, then he’s going to go with her. She doesn’t have a choice, anyway.

“Alright,” Baekhyun says reluctantly, “let’s get that packaged verified.”

Rin and Baekhyun walk down the brick path towards the Post Office. The grandeur of the building is further illuminated by the full moon, its marble pillars appearing to shimmer in the moonlight. The package is heavy in Rin’s arms, a dense box wrapped in plastic. Written on the side in black ink are the words, “Sensitive contents. Do not open.”

Rin is extremely curious as to what is inside. If it weren’t so important, she would have ripped it open the moment she received it. But the boss was serious when he gave it to her, and she didn’t want to risk losing her job. She loved being a Messenger too much to put it on the line like that.

She is snapped out of her thoughts once an unknown voice calls out to her.

The tall boy seems to appear out of nowhere. Rin is startled but relaxes once she takes in his friendly smile.

“Wonderful evening tonight, huh?”

Rin nods politely while Baekhyun regards the new figure suspiciously. Where the heck did this guy come from? It was almost like he popped right out of the bushes. And who would start a random conversation so late into the night? It must be a creep, Baekhyun confirms. All the creeps come out on Friday nights like these, with the moon so high in the sky. Rin senses Baekhyun’s suspicion and almost laughs out loud. Why is he so suspicious? It’s not like anything bad could happen. And if the guy did turn out to be hostile, she could take care of it. She was trained to deal with situations like these. A Messenger could never know if they might get assaulted during their travels, after all.

Baekhyun tries to calm down. Through their connection, he can almost hear Rin laughing at him.

Trying to dispel his suspicions, Baekhyun strikes up a conversation.

“Good evening. I’m Sehun,” the guy says easily.

“I’m Baekhyun,” he replies cautiously.

The conversation seems to go smoothly from there. Sehun doesn’t seem that bad.

Okay, so maybe Baekhyun was being a little too anxious. But he’s not a city kid for nothing. He’s lived on the streets long enough for him to trust his instincts, and right now, his instincts are telling him that something is wrong.

But it’s too late for him to do anything about his suspicions now. It’s like it happens in slow motion. Suddenly the guy they were talking to is gone. He doesn’t have time to even think about where the damned bastard went.

Baekhyun can only watch in horrified shock as a bullet whizzes right past his nose and

and

the target

is Rin.

She lets out a feeble gasp as the projectile plunges into her stomach, a sickening sight, before falling to the ground. Her pain ricochets into their connection. He grabs his head in agony as he lets out a choked scream, his whole body trembling and his head is about to explode and there is so much blood and Rin isn't talking. Come on, say anything, anything at all, let me know you are still alive--

He feels like throwing up. The bile rises in his throat and it tastes like acid. Tears burn at the back of his eyelids. Everything hurts. Everything hurts and nothing is okay. Why is he just standing there? Why isn't he doing anything? Why is he such a coward? His fists clench and his teeth grind against each other and the blood is too red. It's so red. So freaking red. It's everywhere.

He scrambles towards the body on the ground  as a sob tumbles out of his mouth. He knew something was wrong. Why? Why didn’t he realize sooner?

“Rin,” he cries helplessly, “Rin…tell me you’re alright. I’m sorry I didn’t notice anything. I’m going to help you. Please, hang in there.”

She grabs his hand, and it takes everything in him not to wail, because her grip is so weak. Baekhyun trembles with the effort.

“The package,” Rin sputters, blood dribbling from . “He took the package.”

“I don’t give a damn about the ing package,” Baekhyun howls. He’s frantic. His hands are shaking and everything around him is just too much. Too bright, too loud, too red. He needs to help her.

“Rin, just stay still,” he says shakily. “I-I’ve been reading up on this Guardian and Master stuff…I think I can heal you…”

Rin can’t even reply at this point. Her breathing is faint and her eyelids are drooping and Baekhyun’s heart is sinking. Knowing that he has to work quickly, he quickly asks if she has a knife, and of course she does. She’s been trained to have one at all times, she says. He tells her not to waste her breath explaining something like that.

Baekhyun lets the blade break his skin and hisses at the sting. The blood drips from his hand and he hopes to god that he can remember the spell. Please oh please don’t let her die please let me remember the spell please I need to get this right. He mutters it over and over like a mantra, like he’s possessed, like he’s the one dying. Drip, drip, drip. His blood lands, drop by drop, into , matching the beat of his words.

The moon hangs high in the sky.

 author's note 

3.26.2016 I AM SO SORRY FOR THE LONG WAIT!! ENJOY!