Tae Yang – Eyes, Nose, Lips

Se Kyung struggled for free with tears streamed down her face as Xiu Min kept running his hands on all over her smooth skin. It was starting to be hopeless. She felt hopeless. It supposed to be right, but it suddenly turned upside down. What happened to the Xiu Min who she used to know before?

“Xiu Min! What do you think you are doing?!” As if the heaven came to her rescue, Kris flung the door open with blaring eyes. His tall figure stormed over Xiu Min before he pulled him away from the poor girl. “Xiu Min! Wake up, now!! Can’t you see that she is crying?! You are hurting your own girl, it, Xiu Min!!” Shaking the latter’s shoulder vigorously, Kris shouted at Xiu Min who shut his eyes tight. God. Please chase the monster away from his soul. Just let me take all the curses.

With a small last shook, Xiu Min fluttered his eyes open and his dark brown orbs were widened towards the careless appearance of Kris. His duizhang looked miserable, even though the anxiety in his eyes as a friend could still be seen. Instantly, a short shot of pain attacked his head just before he spun around, and gasped to see the crying Se Kyung. Confused, Xiu Min yanked Kris’s hard grip from his shoulder, and rushed towards her. “Se Kyung?! Why are you cryin—”

“Don’t touch me! Please… stop.” Squeaking in fear, Se Kyung shifted back as she embraced her knees, sobbing hardly.

Surprised to see the act of Se Kyung, along with the flash of memory of his own doing, Xiu Min let out a scream as he grabbed his hair in frustration. He stumbled backwards to the wooden table before he collapsed onto the floor. “I’m a monster.”

“Take Xiu Min out.” Sternly, Kris commanded towards Chen and Luhan who stood still with a surprised reaction. Without wasting another second, both of the males pulled Xiu Min up and supported him by the shoulder.

As Kris was left alone with Se Kyung, the man crouched down with knitted eyebrows. “Se Kyung? Are you okay?” Gently, he asked, trying to catch her gaze.

However, the girl didn’t answer, instead she gave Kris a soft whimper as a response. Knowing what had just happened – due to Luhan’s information about his ‘brilliant advice’ – Kris took out his phone and slide the green symbol away. “Li Yin noona? Can you come here, please?”

A few sentences were exchanged before the call was ended. Kris stared down towards the tearing Se Kyung in anxiety. “Xiu Min – he wasn’t himself when he did that to you.”

Slowly nodding, with a force to understand Kris’s words, Se Kyung sunk her head in between her arms. If only she could, she wanted to ignore the cruel reality, she didn’t want to face anyone right then. But she knew that a human like her would never be able to run away from the reality, the destiny, the fate.

Pushing away the urge to pat her back in comfort as Se Kyung will surely scream again, Kris sighed heavily, rethinking about his decision for making Xiu Min to fall for Se Kyung. “I know that this is hard, but I hope that you will be able to forgive him one day. Believe me, the man who did that to you wasn’t Xiu Min who you used to know before.”

Murmured in response, Se Kyung finally lifted her head up, and flashed Kris her glimmering eyes. “Who was—that man? D-did Xiu Min oppa has a dissociative identity disorder?” Her voice cracked but she could care less about that. Explanation was the only thing that she wished to hear at that moment.

Taking in a short silence, Kris nodded slowly as he spoke, “If that is what you believe in a scientific way, then please do. But Xiu Min, and us—are more than that.” The last syllables escaped his lips in a form of whispering, as if Kris never wished to elaborate more.

Just when Se Kyung was about to throw him more question, the door creaked open, revealing the soft but worried face of Li Yin. The first curiosity for the intention of Kris to call her there was erased, as the tearing girl could be spotted at the corner of the kitchen. “Se Kyung? Are you all right?”

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Stumbling into his room, Xiu Min sunk himself into the old bed harshly. Both Luhan and Chen stood at the end of the bed with furrowed eyebrows. Chen wore a worried reaction whilst Luhan wore a guilty face; regretted to tell the false information at Xiu Min. “Hey, it will be fine soon. Don’t blame yourself.” Carefully, Chen spoke up as he eyed Xiu Min who placed an arm over his eyes.

“I can’t bear myself to see she cried.” Almost inaudibly, Xiu Min confessed with his horse voice. “She was hurting – because of me. I’m turning into a monster.”

Shifting closer, Luhan leaned down before he patted Xiu Min’s shoulder in comfort. “You will be fine soon, Xiu Min. Se Kyung wouldn’t let you turn into a monster.”

“I knew she wouldn’t — but she will get hurt, if I keep approaching her like this.” Softly, he whispered in dismal.

“It is hard, hyung. But there must be a reason for you to take her as your girlfriend. I believe that it is not because of her familiarity to your late-girlfriend. It is because more than that, hyung.” Confidently, Chen stated without moving closer to comfort Xiu Min. To him, it was better to leave the broken person a time alone, before he could come and gently comfort him.

Slowly removed his arm away, Xiu Min stared straight towards Chen with furrowed eyebrows. “H-How did you knew that Se Kyung resembled her?”

“It wasn’t like I wasn’t with you when you did that mistake.” Smiling weakly in the memory of the past, Chen exclaimed before he spun around to leave. “Just call me if you need something, hyung.” With that, Chen’s figure disappeared behind the wooden door, probably was leading towards Li Yin.

Staring helplessly towards the ceiling, Xiu Min felt nothing but guilt mixed with hurt. “Do you think I wouldn’t make the same mistake again?” That question was directed towards Luhan who sat beside him, although the words almost dispersed into the thin air of winter.

Luhan lowered his gaze momentarily before he answered in hesitant, “I don’t want to give you an advice again—but if you treasure Se Kyung, and wouldn’t treat her like the way you did in your past, then you can have the happiness.” A pause was taken as the man threw Xiu Min a line of smile. “I used to have a tiny crush for Se Kyung before, but since you need her more than I do, then I will let it go. You have to promise me to cherish her though!”

Startled upon hearing his confession, Xiu Min widened his eyes before he sat up. “You… do?”

“I did.” Flashing the male his unaffected smile, Luhan nodded softly with a serene reaction. “Then promise me to do your best.”

Throwing his gaze downwards in guilt, Xiu Min murmured lightly as he spoke, “I will.” A short silence engulfed the atmosphere, giving some time for both of the males to think. “But — what happened to duizhang and Sica noona? I thought you said that they were happy. Then why did Kris appeared like that? It can’t be because he just had… an intimate relationship with noona. He has been cured. So what is coming up now?”

 Beast - Fiction Orchestra ver. for Piano [Click play. Sorry, I couldn't find this on YouTube]

The weeks passed painfully without the usual sunlight to beam over the dull house. Xiu Min knew that he was at the fault, it was his karma for hurting Se Kyung. Though, he lived lifelessly without seeing her figure. The others kept urging him to go to her house instead, but with the flash of memory which happened because of his own unconscious doings, Xiu Min felt ashamed to even show up in front of the girl who had done so much for him. So he waited – he waited for everything to be fine again. The waiting indeed felt like a stab in his heart, but he couldn’t do anything with it. In order not to see Se Kyung cried again, Xiu Min chose to torture himself by waiting for her to come back.

Eventually, the month met its most painful ending as another date was being crossed on the worn calendar. Se Kyung wore an emotionless face as she pushed the door of the car closed. Her parents followed her from behind as their eyes travelled around the woods. “Se Kyung dear, are you sure that he lives here? This kind of place…” Softly, Mrs Baek asked as the last syllables appeared in a form of whisper.

Slowly nodding, Se Kyung turned her head around lightly and threw her parents an assurance gaze. “Yes. He lives here with his friends. They—aren’t as rich.” But their hearts are rich with that welcoming feeling. Unknowingly, a small smile crept onto the corner of her lips when the flash of the memories of EXO M appeared in her mind.

Mr Baek gave his daughter a suspicious look before Se Kyung faced the front again. “The maids told us that you’ve been out quite frequently for the last three weeks. Was this the place where you went to?” His voice was stern but warm, resembled the father who had raised Se Kyung up with care even though both him and his wife were barely home.

A silence embraced the petite figure of Se Kyung momentarily as the painful memory crept into her mind. “Yes. But that was last month.”

Sending her husband a worried look, Mrs Baek asked, “Why did you stop visit them again? Did you had an argument?” Her facial expression was full of anxiety and care, with a tinge of curiosity in Se Kyung’s sudden change in behaviour.

“No, I was just thinking of spending more time with SHINee and the others. We barely see each other in the University now.” A light sadness could be detected in Se Kyung’s voice, obviously was missing her old friends.

Smiling motherly, Mrs Baek Se Kyung’s back in a soothing way as she spoke, “Your life saver’s house is quite far away from the area where you and your friends lived at. It makes yourself harder to see both in the same time. Why don’t they move in to our neighbourhood?”

“Umma, our neighbourhood is a place where the most expensive villas are. They might not have enough money to buy for a villa there.” With a small pout, Se Kyung stated before she glanced towards her beloved mother.

Mrs Baek nudged her husband lightly when an idea popped up into her mind. Her eyes brightened along with the thoughts. “Honey! What if we just buy them a house instead of shoving them the rewards for saving our Kyungie?”

Just when Mr Baek was about to give a response to the brilliant idea of rewarding their daughter’s life saver, a loud whooshing sound could be detected, storming across them. Se Kyung shot her head up in shock, the moonlight which barely shone above the woods was slowly being covered with dark clouds. A cold shiver ran through her spine. She turned around facing her parents as they have stopped walking as well. “Umma… did you saw that?” Lightly whining, Se Kyung asked in fear.

Mrs Baek nodded before she held her husband’s arm. “Are there any wild animals here, Se Kyung? You have been here for numerous times already, right?”

The said girl shook her head gingerly, scanning the dark place around them which begun to be filled with fogs. Where did the fogs come from? Her orbs stared towards her mother who looked scared and her father who started having goosebumps. “There aren’t any. I always go back from this place with my chauffeur to accompany me. Even at night, there aren’t any wild animals except for birds.” Softly, she stated with anxious eyes.

A short silence filled the atmosphere. As Se Kyung was planning to continue with walking, a black figure dropped from the sky (or perhaps the trees), and stood firmly in front of them. It was a man with the palest skin which Se Kyung had ever saw in her life, as if the blood itself was scared to flow in his body. The contrast of his jet black hair only made his pale skin stood out like the moonlight that cascaded upon them, and the man strangely wore a classical suit. A pair of fangs grew inches out of his red velvet lips, and that man was in a formal wear with a black opera cape. If Se Kyung was still the child who believed in folktales, she would be gladly see the man as a vampire… or was he really?

“M-Mr? Are you okay?” Boldly, Se Kyung asked when the figure in front of them shifted himself closer towards her, his eyes were darting for her milky neck. Gulping in fear, Se Kyung glued her eyes towards the man cautiously.

However, the strange figure didn’t give anything in response, instead he held Se Kyung’s shoulders tightly with a sinister smirk. Just when Mrs Baek let out a horrendous shriek as the man drew himself towards Se Kyung’s neck, an abrupt drop of the temperature could be felt before another person popped out from the trees, and threw the man away from Se Kyung.

“Why did you let him to come near you?!” The furious Xiu Min filled her sight, droplets of cold sweats rolled down his flawless face as he was panting hard. His hands replaced the tight grip of the man on her shoulders, only this time, it was gentle and warm.

Snapping out from her thoughts about the folktales which she’d heard for numerous of times during her childhood, Se Kyung’s gaze found its way towards the face which she’d yearned to see for the last three weeks. “I — don’t know.” She was stuttering with a shiver, finally realised what could have happened to her if Xiu Min didn’t came in the right time. It was like a spellbound. Se Kyung noticed that she could not move an inch when the man’s gaze pierced into her dark brown orbs. In fear, a tear slipped down her glistening eyes below the moonlight. “I don’t know…”

Sighing in relief, Xiu Min pulled the petite figure of Se Kyung closer as he embraced her in comfort. “It’s okay, it’s okay.” His fingers her hair, which had been coloured in dark brunette, gently as she sobbed on his chest. Silently, Xiu Min thanked the heaven for letting Kris to stay at Jessica’s apartment for another night, thus letting him to slip out of the house in order to practice for his power.

“Omo, did you saw that? That man just flew back to the tree!”

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Four people sat on the old couch before Luhan and Chen walked into the living room, greeting the guests politely. “What makes you come here with your parents, Kyungie?” Curiously, Luhan asked with his wide eyes. However, his polite smile disappeared in the moment he saw the soft stain of tears on the girl’s cheeks.

“Umma and appa just wanted to thank Xiu Min oppa for saving me before.” Pulling up a small smile, Se Kyung stated as her eyes followed the act of Luhan and Chen who sat comfortably on the couch across them.

Mrs Baek patted Se Kyung’s back lightly with a wide grin. “Indeed! And we intend to give all of you a reward for looking after my daughter!” Her gaze then trailed over Xiu Min who sat quietly with his lips to slowly curl up. “Plus, this young man had just saved my daughter again.”

“You’d saved Se Kyung again, hyung? From who?” With curious eyes, Chen asked when the expression of Xiu Min changed.

He clenched his fist tightly as the flash of the memory appeared at the back of his mind. From a ing vampire. “From a e who dressed up to attract attention from girls.”

“What?! So that man really intended to—” Mrs Baek hugged her husband’s arm in anxiety, thinking of the possibility of Se Kyung’s condition without Xiu Min.

Mr Baek cleared his throat to calm the situation down before he spoke up, “Thank you, young man for saving our beloved daughter again. We clearly have no knowledge about the stranger’s bad intention towards Se Kyung. With that, I hope that you will accept our small gift for a villa next to our house.”