2.

Realisation

~*~

“Jongin Oppa –“ Mira called as she gently his hand which was both rough and warm. She has been beside him all throughout the day and night. She didn’t want to know what happened or asked further about it. All she wanted is for Jongin to open his eyes and be the first person he would see. It has been a day since he was out and he didn’t show any sign of waking up. Although the rest of EXO assured that it was normal for a wolf to take a few days to heal major injuries, she was still worried for him.

Meanwhile, in the living room, Uncle Lee paced back and forth as he tried to find a way to get Lana back. Even though he was confident Yongguk wouldn’t do anything stupid towards her, he couldn’t help but feel anxious thinking about how she has to live in the most dangerous environment for any human being. Also, he didn’t like having Lana on the other side, the supposedly enemy side. She was theirs, still.

“This has to be a temporary decision. We can’t afford to have Lana staying with them forever!” Uncle Lee clenched his jaws tightly.

Kris’s eyes lowered to the floor as he spoke in somewhat defeated tone. “We’re going to bring her back.”

“She’s doing it to save Jongin. Once he’s up, we’ll get her.” Chanyeol revealed, feeling more positive.

However, Uncle Lee didn’t seem sure and confident that it was going to be that easy. He frowned and let out a long sigh. “Bringing Lana back might be easy but now the Council vampires are involved in this. Soon, the whole vampire kind will be aware of this. And when that happens, Lana will forever be in their clutches.”

Joonmyun sighed and closed his eyes as he tried to erase the image of losing Lana forever. It was already tough enough watching her back disappearing and leaving them. He couldn’t afford to have her gone. Worst, the possibility of having her as an enemy because she might eventually turned into a cold one.

Luhan clenched his fists tightly and slowly becoming agitated. “This is Yongguk’s plan! He masterminded all this so he can have Lana!”

They nodded in unison. “We shouldn’t have trusted him!” Baekhyun roared.

“To hell with the Council and the treaty... I don’t believe they ever wanted their King back. They’re just using him as an excuse to get back at us and snatch Lana away.” Jongdae stated.

The rest of them agreed and realised that this was just a plan to get Lana instead of ending her curse. Using the King as bait and then gaining possession of Lana. They didn’t intend to keep the King to begin with, hence getting rid of him came as an easy acceptance for the vampires. However, they made it seem like it was an outrageous mistake caused by Jongin and the wolves in order to battle them out.

At least this was what they thought.

But Uncle Lee shook his head and rejected their claim. “I don’t think Yongguk would ever do such thing to get Lana. He won’t use Jongin –“

“Uncle Lee, why is it that you’re always putting good words for Yongguk?” Sehun’s tone was slightly pissed as he directed his question to Uncle Lee.

Uncle Lee could only flash a small smile and said. “I’m never on their side, trust me. I just want you guys to know that Yongguk isn’t what you think he is. He will do anything to protect Lana against his own kind.”

“Yes, we are aware of that but now I don’t see this as just mere protection.” Luhan joined. “He wants more.”

“He vows to protect her but he wants a guaranteed protection... Meaning, he wants her by his side eternally.” Yixing added.

“We must remember that although the King is gone, Lana is still in danger. There are many vampires chasing after her blood. Unless she becomes the Queen of their kind and eventually turns into one of them, her life is still bounded by the curse. To Yongguk, this is the perfect opportunity. He saves her from the King and also gains her as his wife.” Kyungsoo explained his piece.

Baekhyun stepped forward and asked. “Uncle Lee, do you still see Yongguk as noble as you think he is?”

Uncle Lee remained silent.

“We just hope he possesses at least a little nobility to keep Lana human until we get her back.” Minseok joined.

“At the end of the day, the ultimate winner isn’t Lana.” Joonmyun said.

“Yongguk is...” Tao further pointed out.

Uncle Lee sighed. “I guess you guys are right.”

“You saw Yongguk when Jongin wasn’t in the picture yet, but now...” Kris trailed and let Uncle Lee figured out himself.

“Lana is still Jongin’s mate.” Chanyeol emphasised. “He’ll suffer without her.”  

Uncle Lee nodded, finally agreeing to EXO. “Let’s get Jongin back up in two feet and bring our girl back home.” Although he believed Yongguk will take care of Lana, he still wanted her back for good and for Jongin.

Mira fell asleep while waiting by Jongin’s side; however, she turned wide awake immediately when she felt movement from his fingers. She was holding his hand all throughout the night and when it suddenly moved, she straightened her back and called out his name.

“Oppa... Jongin Oppa –“

Jongin slightly moved his neck and slowly opened his eyes to the bright light. It was so bright that he immediately shut his eyes tightly, trying to adjust the brightness. After a while, he opened his eyes to see Mira’s frantic eyes. He could hear her calling for him, but her voice sounded faint. It must have been days since he was knocked unconscious because his body seemed to be taking a long time adjusting to the present state. In a few seconds, the rest of EXO crowded around his bed and he scanned their faces one by one. But, someone was missing.

“Where’s Lana?” Jongin’s voice croaked as he started coughing weakly.

Kris handed him a glass of water while Mira helped him up to a sitting position. He took the drink and gulped it quickly since he throat felt so dry. Once again, he looked around the room to spot his girl but she was nowhere in sight. He touched his bare body and examined if there were any injuries. Everything seemed gone.

“Oppa, are you alright? How are you feeling? You were unconscious for almost two days!” Mira sobbed as tears welled up her eyes. She threw a hug around him but instantly pulled away when Jongin slightly whimpered in pain.

Jongdae tapped her shoulder and said. “Mira, Jongin’s injuries aren’t fully healed.”

Understood, she pulled away from him and settled beside him, still holding his hand.

“Where’s Lana?” Again, he asked.

Mira looked into his eyes and replied rather boldly. “She’s no longer here. She left.”

“Mira –“ EXO tried to stop her but she further added.

“Look at you now. She caused this. Now that she’s gone, don’t ever think about her anymore.” Mira spoke.

Jongin tilted his head and frowned at Mira for saying a load of nonsense. “Don’t play around with me. Where is she?” His tone turned annoyed. “Lana! Lana!” He called loudly.

“Jongin, she’s not here.” Joonmyun finally said.

“What do you mean, Hyung?” Jongin looked at the leader with a frown so deep that the rest of EXO knew it was going to be really tough for him.

Luhan approached forward and sat on the edge of the bed, facing Jongin with deflated shoulders. “For now, she’s not here. She’s with Yongguk and –“

“She’s with Yongguk?!” Jongin burst in as he clenched his fists angrily.

“Jongin, listen.” Kris spoke quite calmly still. “She’s with Yongguk for now because she made a deal with the Council vampires.”

“What are you talking about? Just tell me straight!” Jongin was clueless. However, the fact that Lana was with Yongguk turned him mad and impatient. He wanted a direct answer but it seemed like the guys were holding back.

“She made a deal to marry Yongguk –“  Chanyeol finally revealed.

Jongin’s eyes turned wide and his body slowly trembled. Kyungsoo held his shoulder hoping he would calm down but instead, Jongin brushed him away and began to stand up. “W-W-What –“ However, not long he succumbed to the pain and fell back down to his bed.

“Don’t stand up. You haven’t recovered.” Yixing advised but was turned to deaf ears when Jongin stubbornly forced himself up.

“I’m taking her back!” He growled.

“No!” Luhan shouted. “You can’t...”

Jongin glared at him with piercing eyes and said. “She’s not going to marry that filthy blood er!”

“Jongin, don’t do this... You’re going to –“ Baekhyun sighed.

“I don’t give a . If I’m going to destroy him in order to get Lana back, I will!”

The rest of EXO however, remained firmly rooted in their spot. Tao placed his hand on Jongin’s shoulder and looked right into his eyes. “Jongin, if you take her back –“

“I will take her back!” He cut in.

“She’s going to die, for goodness sake!” Luhan blasted furiously. “Don’t you get it? She will die at the hands of the Council vampires because she made a deal!”

“I don’t care about the deal she made!”

Joonmyun grabbed hold of Jongin’s hand and led him to sit. “She made the deal to save you, Jongin.” He spoke gently. “She did all this for you.”

Jongin stopped his frantic actions for a while and gazed into the leader’s eyes. “What did you say? She wanted to save me?”

Joonmyun nodded. “Yes, she was left with no choice.”

“B-B-But...” A tear slid down Jongin’s cheek as he recalled the last few moments he remembered of the night; Lana’s scared eyes while looking at him.

“You have to understand her decision.” Luhan added.

“We promise to get her back but in the meantime, we must never act rashly.” Kris reminded.

“She can’t marry him.” Jongin sobbed.

Sehun lightly his brother’s back and soothed. “She loves you; that matters the most.”

"...that I shall say goodnight till it be morrow."

To be continued...

Oh Jongin, keep calm and trust Lana on what she's doing.

A/N:

So so sorry that I skipped 2 weeks. Been really busy with school and everything else. Nonetheless, here's an update. =)