Some decisions don’t have to be made.

“Hyung,” he said softly, coming to stand behind Sunggyu, who had his back turned to him.

The man turned immediately, letting go of the baseball bat in his hand. For a second, he only stared at him; the next moment, he was running toward Sungjong hurriedly.

“Sungjong, you’re back! You’re alright!” He flung his arms around him, engulfing him in a hug.

Sungjong stood there for a moment, feeling Sunggyu against him, his heart jumping in his throat, before returning the hug. His hands tightened around the man protectively while his insides burned and ached with longing. In the year or so he had been with the Kim family, he had never been able to do more than hug Sunggyu. But he had learned to take all that he desired from that one contact. It was his way of connecting to the only person he would lay his life down for without thinking twice, because there was nothing more he could do.

“How are you hyung?” he asked, his tone as casual as possible even though his heart was racing.

Taemin had told him over and over again that this was a bad idea. But he had made sure to check that Sunggyu wasn’t being watched.

“They wouldn’t tell me where you went off to, I asked them so many times…they never listen to me-” His voice was muffled in Sungjong’s shoulder, but it wasn’t difficult for him to figure out what he was saying.

“It’s alright hyung,” he said soothingly, patting him gently on the back.

Feeling his heart churn painfully, he detached himself from the hug but Sunggyu still latched onto his arm, too afraid to let go, lest he disappeared in smoke again.

“Why won’t you come back home?” he asked innocently, his lower lips sticking out sadly.

Sungjong wouldn’t lie to him, give him false hope. The only reason he was here was because he had never gotten to say goodbye to Sunggyu properly; he wanted to make up for it. Their paths would never cross again – Sunggyu would concentrate on being happy again, and Sungjong would concentrate on ruling his empire. There was nothing that could bring them together, hold them in place.

“I’m sorry hyung, I can’t. You have to understand. This is goodbye, and I’ll appreciate it if you don’t tell anyone about meeting me here. You see,” he said, leaning toward Sunggyu, “I’m in danger, so I have to hide, so you can’t tell anyone, okay?”

Sunggyu’s face changed color. He looked worried, as he said, “You can hide at home Sungjongie, I’ll protect you.”

He shook his head, smiling a little.

“I’m so sorry hyung but you can’t. I have to go.”

His face fell, and Sungjong was worried that he might start a tantrum but instead, he said more calmly than ever, “Myungsoo misses you.”

If there was one person who had been caught up in the crossfire without having a clue, it was Myungsoo. He regretted it immensely. There had been many times when innocent lives had to be sacrificed for greater things but in Myungsoo’s case … it wasn’t fair. When he had first seduced Myungsoo, it had been business. His goal had been to somehow enter Sunggyu’s life. Myungsoo was collateral damage and he didn’t mind paying for it. But after a few months, he had realized how emotionally invested Myungsoo had become. So devoted in such a short time – Sungjong hadn’t accounted for that.

There was only one way to break this attachment – betray him in the worst possible way. And so he had done and he could only hope that it would feel Myungsoo’s heart with so much hatred that he wouldn’t remember that he used to love him. Besides, the Lee Sungjong he had loved didn’t exist – it was only the Blood Lily who he abhorred.

“He can’t possibly miss me, I did something horrible hyung, and he’ll never forgive me.”

Sunggyu blinked, as if confused.

“But he cries every night. And he never goes out of the house, he sits on the coush with the framed picture of yours and he talks to you all the time, asking you to come back.”

He knew Myungsoo had taken indefinite leave from work but he had thought that it was to hunt him down for revenge. It would make no sense for him to mourn his loss.

“So who looks after you, hyung?”

“Myungsoo does. And Woohyun. But Myungsoo doesn’t like Woohyun, he doesn’t talk to him.”

It didn’t add up. Was Myungsoo angry at Woohyun for shooting at him? But hadn’t he done him a favor? Killig the Blood Lily would be anyone’s dream. It just didn’t make sense. Surely, Sunggyu must have gotten something wrong here.

“If you come back, Myungsoo will be happier.”

Sighing heavily, Sungjong rested his hand on Sunggyu’s head.

“Look after him for me, won’t you?”

He nodded obediently. It was time for Sungjong to leave. He wanted to stay longer, but he couldn’t drag this out. If he stayed longer, it would sap his strength. Maybe he would even be tempted to stay. With the more active role he had to take on to redeem the damages made on STR, he didn’t have any opportunity to be weak. He would have to go back to scheming, pathcing up holes in his empire and make it grow stronger than ever.

Kissing him gently on the forehead while Sunggyu closed his eyes and let the first drop of tear roll down his face, he turned back and made to walk away when the elder suddenly said, in almost a whisper, “I know.”

Sungjong stopped in his tracks.

“I know who you are.”

In slow motion, he twisted back to face Sunggyu, but it wasn’t Sunggyu who met him, at least not the hyung he had gotten to know. The look in his eyes was different, the way he held himself was different, even the way he stood was different. Sungjong was surprised – why hadn’t he noticed this before?

“Hyung?”

Looking down at his feet, he said, in a low but strong voice, “The trauma from the explosion, it boggled my mind farther but I guess then things settled down, even the things from the past. I don’t remember every last detail, and my psychiatrist didn’t announce me as ‘completely normal’ either, but I’m way better than…than you’ve ever seen me in the past year.”

It was as if Sungjong had swallowed an ice cube and it was slowly slipping down his throat into his gut, searing everything in the process. For once, he was at a complete loss for words.

“I didn’t forget what you’ve done for me in the last one year, and I never will. I’m not even going to ask you why, because I thought about it for a long, long time, and I think I now know.”

Did he, did he really know? Or maybe it was a misconception. Did he think Sungjong pitied him or something like he was atoning for his sin? He wished he could tell Sunggyu, there and then, speak the truth; but what right did he have to speak to him about it.

He tried to gauge Sunggyu’s mood – was he angry with him? If he did remember the past, he would know what he had done to him. He would also know his real identity and the fact that they were mortal enemies. But there was no sign of the dsgust or torment he had expected to find in him. At least, not outwardly.

The next thing he said completely threw him off.

“If we meet in the next life, under different circumstances, maybe we can…” Sunggyu chuckled a bit, finally looking up to meet his wide eyes. “Maybe we can test our chemistry.”

There wasn’t a single word that would come to him. He felt shame now, thinking about all the things Sunggyu knew, remembered. How much did he actually know? He didn’t even dare ask. He just stood there, rooted to the spot, his mind oddly blank.

He couldn’t remember what he was supposed to do next; it didn’t even occur to him how Sunggyu remembering everything put him at risk. He would know that the Blood Lily was alive, he would tell everyone, wouldn’t he? If this was any other man who was a threat to his identity, he wouldn’t have hesitated to pull the trigger.

Yet, this was the same man he had saved from a bullet. How could he now take the life he had once saved?

“You should go now, Woohyun will be here to pick me up soon,” he mumbled, lowering his eyes again. Sungjong couldn’t see his face, but he did see his fingers curling into a fist. His hunched shoulders were trembling.

Sungjong finally managed to squeeze out a faint croak from his throat.

“Sunggyu.”

Although he wasn’t sure if he could call him that anymore, he said it, one last time. This would be the last time; it would be dangerous to see him again.

“I know we share opposite sentiments about the things you do, and I can’t ask you to do this for me, but…”

Even before he finished the sentence, Sungjong knew what he would be asking for. But he couldn’t do it, not for love, not for anything in the world. He had created an empire from fire and blood painstakingly, that was all he had ever wanted to do. He wanted to love Sunggyu too now; he could do that, from a distance. There was nothing more he could give him. Maybe Sunggyu knew that too, so he never completed the sentence.

Instead, he said, “Forget it, just…let me know you’re alive from time to time, but not in a way I can turn you in. Because I’m afraid,” his voice quivered here, emotions constricting his throat. He looked up, tears in his eyes, a single streak running down his right cheek. “I’m afraid I may have fallen down the wrong well, and I have no desire to be rescued.”

Sungjong was a mountain of patience, some called him soulless. He was a cold manipulator and he had a high threshold for pain. There was no pain, no fear, no nightmare he couldn’t tolerate.

But right now, he couldn’t bear the weight of Sunggyu’s words. He walked away from him, the man he ever truly loved, disappearing into a mist of oblivion that would wrap around him and protect him. It was a place where Sunggyu couldn’t see him, hear him, touch him.

As far as he was concerned, this chapter of his life was over. It was time for the Blood Lily to rise, again, more powerful than ever.

A/N: Finally, it's the end. Thank you so much for all the love and attention. I couldn't have done it without you guys. I had planned a sequel but it won't be until a while. Sorry guys if you wanted a different ending. <3