CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Forgiven

 The school complex loomed high over their heads and as they trudged across the dusty road in attire that looked mismatched with their clunky baggage, they noticed that before the iron wrought gates, stood three burly men. When they were close enough to make out their faces, the guards straightened out and placed a hand over their weapons but Kris raised a hand to stop them.

“We’re not here for anything but a place to stay.” He called out and the group clustered behind him.

“Find somewhere else kid. This place isn’t for you.” The one on the far right said – his voice so gruff that they felt the tremors in his breath.

“But this is a school.” Luhan stepped up, unafraid.

“Not the type you can afford to attend. Get lost.” The one standing before the middle waved him off, “We’re full.”

“Fine. If you put it that way.” Luhan muttered under his breath as he lowered his head, clenching his fists tightly so that when he lifted them, his eyes were bloodshot and his fangs came through his gums. There was something so frightening yet magnificent about him – his pearly white teeth echoing the glow of the milky moon.

Almost immediately, the guards relinquished their steady hold of their weapons and the group released the breath of air that they all had unconsciously held in.

“You should’ve told us earlier.” The first guy loosened up but didn’t smile.

“We weren’t sure.” Kai’s voice was as biting as the night air, “We need a place to stay.”

“On the run kiddos?” The one on the far left spoke for the first time and the princes rolled their eyes – for all they knew, they were probably much older than these muscled airheads. From their physicality, the princes could tell that they were human-turned vampires, like Soojung, but far less sharp – probably gym junkies when they were humans.

“Aren’t we all?” Suho raised a brow and a bone-chilling breeze passed between them – there was a truth in his question that frightened all of them. In the present world, nobody had a real home – nobody but the Eligorians had a place that they truly belonged to.

Simultaneously, the three guards cleared their throats as the middle man stepped up and waved at them, “Sorry guys but we’re going to have to check your bags first. Then, you’re going to have to see the head mistress – she’ll decide if you can stay or not.”

Without another word, they relinquished their hold on their baggage and left it on the ground for them to check. The guards roughly emptied everything out and with their feet, sifted through the pile and amongst Sehun’s things, a square box rolled onto the floor. He stiffened and reached down to pick it up as it tumbled in the dirt but the guy on the right got to it first.

“What’s this?” His eyes sparkled and Sehun scowled.

“Give it to me.” He reached out for it but the guard pulled away and rage almost instantly kicked in. “I said. Give it to me.”

The guard smirked – he was enjoying every moment of provoking Sehun and only his brother’s knew that his enjoyment wouldn’t last long if he kept it up. With his rough hands, he opened the box and in amongst the lush velvet lining; there was humble silver ring that caught the light of the burning torches on either side of the gate.

It twinkled in the darkness and caught Jaehwa’s eyes. From where she stood it looked almost like a band of molten lava, trapping the flames in its glorious polished sheen. ran dry and all she could do was reach up to touch the necklace she hid under the collar of her dress. He had kept his wedding ring as she had kept hers.

A soft smile graced her face at the thought. The feeling of his lips against hers was still fresh in her mind and she could still feel his taste lingering on her skin. She didn’t know what to make of it because the whole moment seemed so surreal and beautiful but when they parted from each other, it suddenly grew awkward. The type that made you nervous from speechlessness and sent your mind into a flurry of thoughts that was impossible to decipher.

“Tch.” The guard threw it back to Sehun who caught it and shut the box immediately. He shoved it into his pockets and at all costs, avoided Jaehwa’s gaze – he didn’t know if she saw it and he wasn’t sure if he wanted her to.

After the kiss, their frustration had dissipated into a clumsy silence filled with stolen glances and blushing smiles, which he didn’t mind – the problem was physical distance was involved in the equation. They seemed to gravitate away from each other, walking at separate ends of the group and as exciting as it was, he didn’t know whether it was a good or bad sign.

In the current predicament, he found it rather embarrassing that she saw the wedding ring he’d kept because for all he knew, Jaehwa had thrown hers away years ago. To Sehun, sentimentality was always something he’d rather avoid because in many cases, he felt it impinged on his manliness.

The checking continued until all the contents of the bags were emptied and as the princes leaned down in annoyance to repack everything, one of the guards walked up to Jaehwa. He had sensed that there was something different about her and as the wind carried her scent to him, he felt his mouth begin to pool with saliva. He knew then that she wasn’t a vampire and as he stepped up to her subtly, she straightened up and looked up at him from under her long, thick lashes.

“Yes?” Her voice was soft and sweet like a melody.

He smirked and scoffed, “Oh that’s not going to work on me beauty.” He clicked his tongue and D.O straightened up beside her, glaring at the taller man with hard eyes. He was strong despite his small frame.

“What do you want?” He snapped.

“Your friend here isn’t a vamp, is she?” He pointed at her with a stubby finger and instantly the princes were up on their feet, leaving their belongings on the ground. There was a guardedness about them that told the guard he was right. His eyes sifted through the crowd and landed on Soojung who stood with her dark brown hair fanned out across her thin shoulders. He reached for her arm and gripped it so tight she winced.

“Hey!” Lay, who stood beside Soojung, immediately reached out to grip onto her other arm, “What are you doing?”

“Just checking if she’s-“

Out of anger, she hissed, baring her fangs at him and immediately the guard let go of her. A smirk spread across his face and he flicked her chin, “Woah. No need to be so feisty.”

Soojung rolled her eyes and felt her fangs ease back into her gums before she spat onto his shoe. “Don’t touch me again.” Her tone wasn’t the least bit nice. He’d messed with the wrong girl that night. 

“You little bit-“ He was about to swear at Soojung but Lay ushered her behind him.

“Don’t you dare.”

The burly man backed off as he fixed his gaze back on Jaehwa and walked to her with powerful strides, determined to redeem his image after Soojung had trampled all over it. Just as he was about to reach for Jaehwa though, Tao intervened and placed a hand on his shoulder.

“You wouldn’t want to do that.” He whispered into his ear but the guard brushed him off.

“She’s not allowed on these grounds unless she’s our kind. Either she goes or all of you go.” He hissed darkly, “Or I could get rid of her for you.”

Tao opened his mouth to dispute but Jaehwa’s icy voice rippled into the empty space of his brief silence.

“I’d like to see you try.” There was a darkness about her that none of them had encountered and in that moment, there was something so alluringly rebellious about her that sent shivers running through them. She stood straight as ever, dead calm and difficult to read.

The guard muttered something under his breath before he reached for his weapon when the front door of the school eased open and a slip of a figure emerged in the darkness. The sound of the heavyweight door creaking was so ear piercingly loud in the still of the night that everything stopped. In the gaps of the sudden stillness, there was the cracking sound of high heels tapping along the stone path before a familiar face was illuminated in the light of the torches.

“Head mistress.” The three guards bowed and a woman who looked about thirty stepped out from the other side of the high gate in a completely black outfit – black blouse, black pencil skirt, black coat, black stockings and polished leather ankle boots. Her bronze-brown hair had been spun into a neat bun with a pen fed through it and on the bridge of her straight nose were a pair of black, cat-eye glasses.

She peered through them to the guards who were bowing and asked in a shrill tone, “What’s going on?”

“There are people seeking re-“

“Professor Lee.” Baekhyun murmured and she caught the familiarity of the tone immediately. She wedged a hand between the guards, pushing them aside with wide eyes before fell open and the most delightful cry erupted from her thin lips.

“Oh my god.” Her hand moved to and she repeated with tears welling up in her eyes, “Oh my goodness.” This continued for a few more minutes before she finally found it in her to curtsy, “My princes.”

“No, no please. There’s no need for formalities here.” Suho bent down to hold her by the elbows and almost immediately she looked up to study his face. She trembled slightly but in her eyes, he could still see the headstrong teacher they had once known – the strict, widowed vampire who had been their mentor on fine arts and literature.

“I can’t believe you’re still alive.” She cast her eyes over all of them in a mixture of excitement and co