Hi guys!
I woke up this morning with a sudden craving to write about this story again, so here I am with a new chapter ;D
I'm sorry for the slow updates, I've been very busy with school these last few months. From now on I hopefully will have more time to write! :D
Thank you so much for waiting and supporting me guys <3
I hope you'll like this chapter! It's not perfect but I did my best ;) the story is still slowly building itself... hehe ;)
 

          The next morning, Donghae woke up all alone in the bed. Hyukjae should have been there, lying beside him, since he had agreed to share his bed with the cursed boy again. But the elder male wasn't there and his side of the bed was no longer warm.

Still half asleep, Donghae slightly lifted his head and listened to the sounds around him. The flat was quiet, except for the shower running in the next room. Seemed like Hyukjae was already getting ready for work.

The boy heaved a deep sigh and let his head fall back on the pillow. He nuzzled its soft fabric and inhaled deeply. A faint smile tugged on his lips. Hyukjae's scent still lingered on the sheets.

He began to fall back into slumber. He was quite tired that morning. It wasn't one of those unpleasant state of exhaustion he used to feel whenever he drowned into long period of numbness and depression. It was a good kind of tiredness.

His smile widened a bit as he recalled the events of the previous day.

After Heechul's departure, Hyukjae and Donghae had eaten their dinner while chatting about the elder's day at work. Then, Donghae had successfully taken his shower without any assistance, which made him really proud. He knew he had splashed water all over the floor, but Hyukjae had praised him and told him he had done well, and the boy had felt utterly happy and less helpless.

After that, Donghae had sat on the couch for a while, listening to Hyukjae washing the dishes and cleaning the kitchen. The man had taken care of some other things too, like paying bills and writing a few emails - though Donghae barely understood was emails were about.

Donghae had been surprised when Hyukjae told him that he had a flatmate called Henry. The guy was young, about Donghae's age, and he was still a student. He was from Canada, though he had Chinese origins. His room was the one in which Choco was currently locked in.

When Donghae asked if it didn't bother him to have a dog in his room, Hyukjae informed him that Henry wasn't at home and wouldn't be for a couple months because he was on an exchange program with an Australian school for a semester.

Hyukjae had also assured that Henry wouldn't mind to have Donghae living with them. They had apparently already spoken about it over the phone. The cursed boy had thought that Hyukjae's flatmate seemed to be a nice guy. However he remained doubtful about being accepted so easily into the flat. It made him a little anxious but he decided not to think too much about it.

They tried to let Choco out, but the dog was too scared and aggressive, and Hyukjae had to lock it back into Henry's room. He stayed a long time with his pet, his soft voice soothing the animal, and Donghae patiently waited on the couch until he came back.

Around 11pm, Hyukjae came out of Henry's room. Donghae was slowly dozing off on the couch and they decided to go to bed. Hyukjae accepted to share the bed again, though Donghae could feel how hesitant he was. Yet, the elder quickly slipped under the sheets and even wrapped an arm around the boy to let him cuddle with him. Donghae gladly pressed himself against the other, feeling protected and warmed. They talked a little more, hushed voices in the dark, until Hyukjae fell asleep. Donghae soon followed.

And there he was, waking up a few hours later, without Hyukjae by his side but still feeling the lingering warmth of the man's caring heart. He was slowly getting accustomed to his new life, but not fully used to it yet. Being taken care of, having someone being so nice with him, felt like a dream. A dream he never wanted to wake up from.

He eventually woke up again, but he hadn't slept more that a few minutes because he heard Hyukjae walking around in the bathroom. He needed to use the toilets. His first reflex was to wait for Hyukjae to come back and bring him there, but after a minute of waiting he realized he could actually try to get there by himself. Heechul had said he didn't need any permission, and Hyukjae would maybe praise him again, wouldn't he?

The thought of somehow pleasing the elder gave a little courage to the boy. Feeling an anxious knot in his stomach, he sat up and prepared himself to leave the bed. He was nervous, since he had never gone anywhere by his own, without asking permission, and it felt kind of scary. But he wanted to learn, and not be a burden for Hyukjae.

He tried to remember where the room's door was located. He vaguely knew which direction he needed to take but couldn't tell for sure where it was. He stood up, arms stretched and hands feeling the air. He carefully took a few steps forward, his body slightly trembling and his heart pounding. The sounds produced by the coffee-pot in the kitchen helped to locate the door. His hands soon met the wall and he used it to guide himself to the exit.

A victorious grin crept up his face as he stepped out of the bedroom. On his right, Hyukjae was using the hair-dryer in the bathroom. He knew he had to go left. The toilets were at the bottom of the hallway. Heechul had taught him how to get there.

Hands on the wall, he slowly made his way through the flat. Luckily, Hyukjae didn't have any furniture in the hallway, there wasn't enough space for that, and he didn't bump into anything. He released a shaky breath when, after a couple minutes of blind exploration, he finally reached the door. The knob was round, until the other doors' ones, and it was the confirmation that he had found the right place.

He entered, not caring about turning on the lights nor locking the door, and quickly pulled down his pants. Sitting down on the toilet bowl, he relieved his bladder and washed his hands once done. When he stepped out, Hyukjae's voice was calling out for him.

"Hyukjae!" he called back, and in a few seconds the elder was by his side.

"There you are!" Hyukjae sighed in relief. "I couldn't find you."

"I went to the toilet by myself!", Donghae grinned proudly. A warm hand entangled with his locks, caressing his head tenderly.

"You did great", Hyukjae's voice sounded happy. "Soon you'll be able to move around without help. You're a fast learner."

Donghae felt his heart swell with pride and joy. Being praised by Hyukjae was the best reward he could get.

The doorbell rang. Hyukjae withdrew his hand from Donghae's hair.

"Sungmin and Kyuhyun are here, let's go and meet them, okay?"

Donghae nodded, biting his lower lip nervously. "Okay", he forced his voice not to show how anxious he felt about meeting new people.

"Don't worry, Sungmin is such a sweet guy", Hyukjae said as he guided Donghae through the flat. "Kyuhyun is a bit... How to say? he's not always nice. But I know he'll be gentle with you. Since... he's been cursed too... So..."

Donghae wanted to get more information about that, but Hyukjae made them stop all of a sudden and the following second a door was swung open.

"Hey Min!" Hyukjae exclaimed cheerfully.

"Hi Hyuk", a soft voice replied. "And you must be Donghae", the new comer added. Donghae felt gentle fingers grab his hand and squeeze it carefully. "I'm Sungmin, nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you", Donghae quickly replied. Sungmin sounded so nice, and the cursed boy could feel that he was truly a good-hearted person.

"Where's Kyu?" Hyukjae inquired while Sungmin made his way inside the apartment, not letting go of Donghae's hand. The boy didn't mind and let the other drag him to the couch. They both sat down next to each other.

"He stayed home", Sungmin muttered, sighing. "He didn't feel well. He gets moody on rainy days."

"Aish", Hyukjae breathed out. "Is it okay to leave him alone?"

"He's grown up", Sungmin shortly replied. The conversation seemed to make him upset, Donghae noted.

"Okay", Hyukjae too seemed to feel his friend's reluctance to talk about it. He quickly switched to another topic. "There's enough food for today, I'll go to the groceries on my way back so I may come home a bit later than usual, okay Donghae?"

The boy nodded, repressing himself from pouting.

"I brought this", Sungmin suddenly said and he fidgeted on the couch. Something heavy was dropped on the floor with a loud thud.

"What's this?" Hyukjae inquired, while Donghae tilted his head to the side, wondering what was going on.

"Books", Sungmin answered. "Books for people who need to teach blind people about stuff, like what the world looks like and how it works. Heechul said that Donghae had been locked most of his life, so I thought we could use those to explain things to him."

"Oh, this is nice", Hyukjae muttered. "You're smart!"

"Not really", Sungmin shrugged and then chuckled. "Just smarter than you."

"Yah!" Hyukjae snapped but he sounded more amused than actually angry.

"I'm joking", the other gently laughed. "I'm starving, do you have anything for breakfast?"

"Sure! Donghae, are you hungry too?"

The boy patted his tummy and nodded.

"Okay, let's go in the kitchen then, I'll prepare some breakfast for you."

They s