When left to his lonesome or without anything else to occupy himself by, Yixing often thought about Myungsoo and what his lover was possibly doing without him.

He wondered if Myungsoo was looking for him just as he was, if he felt anxious, petrified, lost as he did. Myungsoo was an aloof character, but Yixing learned after some time together that he could be quite affectionate and attached. He hoped that the younger male wouldn’t pull anything drastic and would wait patiently for his return.

Yixing swore that he would find a way to get back to him. Even if it’s the last thing he ever does, he will return to those beautiful chocolate eyes, to those gentle embraces, to him.

“Myungsoo-ah…” He murmured, staring wistfully at the ceiling. “I miss you… I really want to see you. At least, just to hear your voice again… I’ll come home quickly, I promise.”

Being met with no response and pure silence, Yixing couldn't help the tears that escaped his eyes. He couldn't help crying alone, all by himself, without anyone to save him. And yet, he couldn't help but hastily wipe his tears away when he heard a knock on the door.

"Yixing?" Jongin's familiar voice came from the other side. "I brought you a change of clothes."

The slider then remembered that his body was half-submerged and in hot water; he was taking a bath when his mind must've wandered the usual direction. "C-Come in," he stuttered whilst soaking his hair.

"Just going to leave these here," Jongin stepped into the washroom and placed said clothes on the counter. "Don't sit in there too long; you're going to turn wrinkly." As he was about to walk back out, Yixing addressed him. 

"I'm going to try to teleport back to my world," he said, staring into the water. "I need to get back."

An earnest smile appeared on the doctor's face. "You're leaving so soon? No, I'm just joking... But you should go home, to your Myungsoo and all."

Jongin was well aware of the source of Yixing's stress. The elder boy was often homesick and heartbroken, constantly moping. Jongin had tried to help by distracting him with menial tasks around the house, but inevitably the cure was to send him back home. And he was ready to support the slider with whatever he needed to do so. 

"It's just that... I don't know how." Yixing sighed and scrunched his eyebrows in frustration. He didn't know how that first portal opened up in the middle of his own apartment, much less how to open one at will. The idea of teleporting was still foreign to him. It was frustrating, not knowing how to do something he knew he could do.

“There’s no rush. I know you want to get back as soon as possible, but let it come to you naturally and don’t work yourself over it too much. Alright?”

He nodded slowly and slumped deeper into the water, trying to hide his sulking.

“Oh, while I’m in here… I want to apologize,” Jongin scratched his cheek sheepishly. “I’m sorry for not telling you about Kyungsoo earlier. You must’ve been surprised to see him, ah… Feeding on me.”

“Just… Just a little bit,” Yixing awkwardly smiled in attempt to forget what he saw yesterday. He felt squeamish just thinking about it. “But is it okay for you to give up blood like that?”

The younger nodded. “It’s okay. The vampires are the most hunted race among the unnatural. Kyungsoo may as well be the only one left, and I don’t want him to stop existing. Even if I have to become a walking blood bag, I don’t mind.”

Sometimes it surprised him to see how much he and Jongin were alike; he too, would have sacrificed everything for his beloved Myungsoo. Suffering as an act of love was only something he could relate unequivocally to.

“Besides, I made him promise. I told Kyungsoo that if I became his personal supply, then he couldn’t hunt anyone else anymore. He can’t hurt anyone, but me— what is that?”

Yixing looked up curiously and noticed Jongin was pointing at his neck. “Is there something on me?”

The tanned male walked over to examine his skin more closely. “… That’s… That’s a bite mark.”

He blankly touched his neck and sure enough, he felt tiny indents on his nape where something could have possibly bitten him. “… I don’t remember getting bitten by anything. Maybe it’s just a bug bite—”

But Jongin didn’t listen. He bolted out of the washroom in a furious rage, stomps echoing all throughout the house. “KYUNGSOO!” He shouted, fists clenching so hard that his nails were digging into his skin.

At that moment, Kyungsoo strolled in through the front door and noticed the frantic boy steaming before him. “Jongin? What’s wrong?”

“WHY DID YOU BITE YIXING?!” He yelled, causing the other to flinch. “I TOLD YOU THAT YOU WEREN’T ALLOWED TO BITE OTHER PEOPLE ANYMORE!”

“I-I—” Kyungsoo stuttered, cowering under his rage. “I-I didn’t—”

“YOU PROMISED ME! YOU PROMISED ME, KYUNGSOO! WHY—”

“I didn’t!” The vampire cried, “I swear on my life, I didn’t bite anyone! Please Jongin, I—”

“THEN WHY DOES YIXING HAVE A BITE MARK ON HIS NECK?!”

“I-I don’t know! But I didn’t do anything, believe me! Look, you can even cut me open if you want to, but Jongin, I— I would never…”

Jongin, temporarily at a loss for words, stared into his desperate, pleading eyes. It took him a long moment, but he soon realized just what he was doing; throwing an angry fit over something so groundless. Somehow he knew that if Kyungsoo could form tears, they would be streaming down his pale face as he begged for trust.

“… R-Right, you wouldn’t…” The boy let out a shaky sigh and thumped his forehead, for he felt a headache coming on. “I-I’m sorry, I don’t know what came over me… Maybe I’m just tired.”

Kyungsoo gently cupped his face, his ice cold hands helping Jongin calm down. “You’ve been working a lot lately, Jongin. You need rest, especially since I keep feeding off you—”

“It’s not your fault.”

“Still… Do you want me to get Luhan to come back home? I saw him on my walk earlier. He can take over for you while you rest for a bit.”

“You saw Luhan?” He shook his head. “No, it’s fine. I-I’m fine. Don’t worry about it.”

The vampire sighed and continued to stare worriedly. “Just please get some sleep, at least.”

“I will.”

--

Later, Yixing found himself sitting in Jongin’s room, observing nervously as the doctor solemnly pulled out medical tools right in front of him. “U-Uh… What are you going to do to me?”

“Don’t worry,” Jongin replied while placing glass slides on his desk. “I’m just going to inspect the bite marks on your neck.”

“I’m pretty sure they’re just bug b— ow!” The elder winced when he ripped off a small piece of skin with cold tweezers.

Jongin placed the sample under a microscope and sat at his desk to observe. “I would take some precautionary measures if I were you. Perhaps something was hungry and decided to bite you, which doesn’t come to a surprise because apparently unnatural blood tastes better than human blood… But the chance of infection is high and I don’t want to risk it.”

He shivered, and began to rub away the goosebumps that were forming on his arms. “Infection…?”

“It could be anything, really. Werewolves, arachnids, deities, sirens, zombies, changelings… The list goes on. I just want to make sure you’re okay and not infected.”

Yixing held down a whimper; the way Jongin explained it, it wasn’t the everyday flu infection. This was having a whole other live being injecting its fluids into his body, and the chance of him turning into that live being, whatever it was. As usual, the thought did not sit well with the slider and left him shivering every two seconds.

So Jongin decided it was best to distract him. “I’m curious about something… What’s your world like?”

“… Well,” he thought about it for a second, not knowing where to start. “There are a lot more people walking around, and we don’t really hunt stuff. There are a lot of cars and buildings… Some are so tall they block the sun.”

“Cars’? What are those?”

“They’re machines we use to go to places. It’s faster than walking. We don’t have any unnatural in our world, since they’re usually in made-up stories and myths. Also, the sky is blue.”

Jongin looked up from his microscope with the most incredulous face. “You’re kidding.”

As the doctor continued to squint down the microscope, Yixing tried to remember the world in which he came from as much as he could. He painted a vivid picture in his mind, remembered what he could see, hear, smell, and feel on city streets.

“What else is there?” When he didn’t get a response, Jongin looked up. “Yixing?”

For a moment, the slider was there, sitting in front of him with a distant look on his face. Like a passing wind, he was gone the very next, without a trace to be seen.

where did Yixing go?? oh my oh dear
btw a hemovore is an animal that consumes blood for survival.