CHAPTER EIGHT

Familiar Strangers

“YOU TRICKED US, you bastard!” Kyungsoo cried as he glared daggers at his brother sitting right beside him.

Baekhyun had a smug smile on his face. “Didn’t you recognize my presence earlier?”

The two other boys were taken aback. Their brother got a point. “Well, in our defense, we panicked and we never expected that there was another Guardian here aside from us,” Joonmyeon reasoned out. “We weren’t able to think thoroughly and we thought that the power and aura we felt was from someone dangerous.”

“That was stupid of you, guys,” Baekhyun scoffed which earned him a mild punch on the stomach with the back of Kyungsoo’s fist

“Ouch!” the owner of Light spirit grimaced. “You never changed, D.O-yah.” 

“Look who’s talking,” Joonmyeon snorted. He was perched on the edge of the stage with Haeyoon sitting beside him. “You’re still full of surprises, Baekhyunnie.”

Baekhyun grinned at his two brothers, his pearly white canines showing. “Well, I’m surprised that we’ve been actually going to the same school for almost four years without crossing each other’s paths.”

Haeyoon smiled to herself as she watched the three boys converse happily with each other. They might be acting casual about it but, heck, it was so obvious that they missed one another and Haeyoon really found them silly, especially Baekhyun. He was, in fact, a bubbly guy, throwing quips every now and then that would make them erupt in laughter. Their whole catching-up moment was lively and Haeyoon was having fun just watching them.

“Well, our school is big,” the Water spirit sorcerer shrugged before he paused for a moment, his brows furrowing. “But now that I think about it, back when I still have my memories and powers sealed, I felt weird sometimes.”

Kyungsoo and Baekhyun raised a brow simultaneously. “Weird?”

“Yeah, though I always ignore it, there was something that kept urging me to go to—,”

Baekhyun cut him off, a smirk playing on his lips. “Music room and auditorium?” Joonmyeon shot him a look, making his smirk grew larger. “That’s my usual hang-out place, bro. And because I’m not sealed like you, you’re being pulled by my presence while I can hardly sense you.”

“Our bond was actually affected by the seal, too?” Kyungsoo asked from his seat on the front row beside Baekhyun.

“Somehow,” Baekhyun nodded. “Based on my observation, it’s kinda like a phone signal, the nearer you are to the main tower and the clearer the area, the stronger it is. But with your case before, the signal is somewhat blocked by the seal so I can only receive little while my signal towards you got no hindrances, it’s stronger that’s why you can sense it better.”

“So you felt my presence before, too?” Joonmyeon asked Baekhyun.

The latter raised his right hand beside his face, his thumb and forefinger pinched together. “Very, very little so I didn’t pay much attention.”

“That’s why I was suddenly drawn towards Suho on my first few days here,” Kyungsoo uttered, “Because Haeyoon lifted his seal around that time.”

“You got that right, Kyunggie,” Baekhyun said. He stood up and walked towards the girl before stopping right in front of her. “And I’m really curious about sunshine here,” He smiled charmingly, planting both of his hands on the stage on either side of her. “How did you do that?”

Haeyoon flushed a pretty shade of pink, a bit uncomfortable with the boy suddenly invading her personal space and as if Joonmyeon can feel that, he pushed his brother away on the forehead. “Stop harassing her, Baek.”

The latter gasped dramatically at his brother’s accusation, “I would never do that to sunshine!” Haeyoon smiled awkwardly upon hearing that endearment for the second time. “She’s the reason why my brothers are back and I’ll be forever grateful for it but I can’t help it, I’m sooo curious.” The boy turned to her again with a tooth-achingly sweet grin, his canine on display, reminding her of a cute puppy. “Really, how did you do that?”

The girl shook her head. “I really don’t have an idea, Baekhyun.”

The boy crossed his arms over his chest and put on a thinking face. “What you did was odd, especially for a human.”

“Maybe it was just coincidence,” she offered.

“But how can you explain the strange pull we feel towards you?” Joonmyeon asked.

“What? You, too?” she blurted, recalling that Kyungsoo told her the same thing.

“Count me in,” Baekhyun chirped. “I felt it, too”

“When ‘Soo told me about what happened on the alley he also told me how he found you and I realized that I’m feeling the same pull so I thought that maybe, just maybe, you’re really not an ordinary human,” the black haired boy explained.

“Are you telling me that I’m not a human?” she was bewildered and surprised that they were actually thinking something like that. “That’s impossible, I’m certain that I have no powers and I’m perfectly human.”

“We’re not saying that you’re not a human,” Kyungsoo in, talking in a gentle and calming way. “But it’s a possibility we can’t just take out.”

Haeyoon fell quiet as she pondered over what they said. They are right, everything that was happening lately had been so bizarre and then her parents…they were talking about something that night that gave her a queasy feeling on her stomach. Kyungsoo was right; it was a possibility, no matter how eccentric it is, but she refused to believe it. The idea just didn’t sit right with her. She chose to be closed-minded…

…For now…

“Wait, you lost me when you mentioned the alley,” Baekhyun gave them all a questioning gaze. “What happened?”

Kyungsoo told him that Haeyoon was attacked and, fortunately, he followed her and was able to save her. He also told the boy that that was the time when his seal was lifted.

Baekhyun’s expression became grim. “It was a Tainted One, right?”

“Yeah, I’m sure it was,” Kyungsoo replied, mirroring his brother’s grave look.

“And I’m pretty sure that they were also responsible for the deaths of those young people,” Joonmyeon said.

“But why are they doing that?” Haeyoon asked, the fear she felt was still fresh on her system.

“We don’t know yet, but the fact that they can take human souls like that…” Kyungsoo trailed off, his expression becoming bleaker. “It means that they’re getting stronger.”

The girl shuddered as she recalled her terrifying encounter with the man in cloak. It was about to get her soul that time and she didn’t have any idea. She was really lucky to be saved by Kyungsoo. “W-who are this Tainted Ones, anyway?” she asked in curiosity.

“They were the sorcerers who turned their backs towards Lucere and were lured to take side with Magos in his rebellion. Magos is the most powerful and most intelligent scholar of King Zardus but he got a little ambitious and greedy, you know, like Lucifer the angel.” Baekhyun started explaining. “It was bad enough that he wanted to take over Lucere but he also wanted to have the human world,” he continued and Haeyoon was shocked at what he said. “He started using his powers in evil deeds, gathering sorcerers and turning them into what we now call Tainted Ones. He turned their once good spirits into bad in exchange of stronger but much darker powers. Magos was a smart sorcerer, he secretly created a whole army and when he thought he was ready, he declared a war.” Baekhyun paused and it seemed like he was struggling with his own emotions so Joonmyeon decided to continue where he left off.

“And that was the most gruesome, cruel, and chaotic war that had ever befallen on our world,” he said. “Many innocent had died, families broken, children tortured and Lucere was basically half destroyed before King Zardus was able to seal Magos and bury him in the deepest part of the kingdom. The king and queen died, and Magos’ army retreated but the threat towards the remaining royal blood still exists so we decided to hide them in the human world where the chances of them being found by the Tainted Ones are slim.”

“Why do they still want to kill the Prince and Princess?” Haeyoon can’t help but ask. “They’re just children.”

“But once they were at the right age, where they can use their full potential, they can finish what their father had started,” Joonmyeon told her. “They can end Magos’ for good.”

“So he is not really dead…” Haeyoon spoke, her voice barely above whisper. She can tell by the tense atmosphere that had settled upon them that humans are possibly in great danger now.

Kyungsoo slowly shook his head. “But he’s good as dead…if no one will try to resurrect him.”

A sudden realization clicked in Haeyoon’s mind and she felt like a dead cold hand ran down her spine. “They’re here for the remaining royal blood…”

The three boys looked at her before the same conclusion dawned upon them. “, you’re right,” Baekhyun muttered. “That explains why highschool students are the victims, same age bracket as the Prince and Princess.”

Joonmyeon jumped down from the stage before he started pacing back and forth, his body coiled in fear and anger. “No, no, no, we have to find them first.”

“But where do we start?” Kyungsoo asked, eyes wide and shaking with anxiety.

There was a pause before Baekhyun broke it. “We start here, in this city,” the three looked expectantly at him, urging him to elaborate. “I’m pretty sure there’s a reason why all of the deaths are somewhat centered in this place, right?”

“You mean the Prince and the Princess are around here somewhere?” Haeyoon asked incredulously to which the boy nodded.

“Doing a practically blind search will be hard but it’s better than doing nothing,” Baekhyun said to them. “I just hope that we find the other Guardians soon.”

She bit her lip as she looked at them one by one. “But how are we going to find your brothers?”

The boy cracked a small smile. “By how you find us.”

“But I didn’t find them and lift their seals on purpose,” she pointed out with furrowed brows. “It’s more like…a meeting by chance.”

“Exactly,” he nodded, confusing her and his brothers as well. “I believe that fate is already working its off so that we’ll be able to find the others.

“And here I thought you’ve got a good plan,” Kyungsoo grunted as he walked towards the three then smacked Baekhyun on the back of his head. The heavy atmosphere from earlier was slowly being forgotten but still lurking around them. 

“What?” the boy retorted, rubbing the new sore spot his brother gave him. “It’s better than nothing and besides, there are five of us now. More heads the better.”

“Five?” Joonmyeon cocked an eyebrow. “Hate to break it you, bro, but we’re only four here.”

Baekhyun suddenly had this knowing smile on his face. “I’m pretty sure Chanyeol would make us five.”

The two other males gasped, their eyes bulging out of their sockets, mouths agape. “You found Chanyeol?!” They exclaimed in unison.

Haeyoon blinked, finally catching up on what they’re on about. “You found another one of your brothers?”

“Uh-huh,” the boy smiled widely. “I was able to find Chanyeol five years ago. He was not sealed, like the two of you, and he was searching for us, too. We met half way the search and I’m guessing that when we entered the human realm, we ended up on places near to each other.”

Kyungsoo and Joonmyeon broke out into a grateful blissful smile and Haeyoon can tell that they were already itching to meet their other brother. 

Like Baekhyun, she just hoped that they find the others soon before the worst happens.

“WANT TO GRAB some icecream first?” Taehyung asked with his signature rectangular grin as he slung an arm around his bestfriend’s shoulder. He was walking Haeyoon home because Yoongi and the others can’t do it due to basketball practice and he’s not about to complain. He was more than willing to do it if it means spending more alone time with her.

The girl grinned back at him, “Sure.”

They went to their favorite icecream parlor that had served as their usual hang-out spot since they were young. It was a fairly big place with big glass windows that allowed sunlight to brighten up the place. The furnishings were all in pastel colors as well as the baby pink painted walls and the sky blue ceiling. The whole place was decorated in a cute way that made it pretty and cozy to the eyes.

“You go order, Tae,” Haeyoon said. “I’ll just go the washroom.”

“Okay!”

When she was done and on the way back to their seat, she bump into someone just as she was rounding the corner towards the main area.

She squeaked and prepared herself for the impact of the floor but it never came, instead, she felt a pair of arms around her waist. Her eyes flew open and she was met by a boy with a very pretty face and sandy hair. He could easily pass as a flower boy and with his soft angelic features; Haeyoon could swear that she could also pass as a girl if only he’d wear a wig and a cute dress.

Someone cleared their throat and that’s when the boy gently, almost reluctantly, released her on her own feet. Her eyes went to the other two boys behind the pretty one and had to literally look up because of their towering height. The one on the left side had a short dirty-blonde hair that was spiked up in a stylish way. He had two piercings on the left ear and one on the other but it didn’t lessen his good-looks, if anything, it made him look more attractive and hot in a kind of ‘bad boy’ way. He had thick angled brows that framed his dark eyes that seemed to bore through her soul. 

The other boy on the right side had a pair of sharp eyes with seemingly natural dark circles underneath each and a beautiful pair of slender lips. His tanned skin was complemented by his dark brown hair. Though he looked intimidating, there was a certain charm on the boy that made him look gorgeous, nonetheless. 

“I-I’m sorry!” she immediately apologized when she had her composure back. “I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

“It’s alright, just be careful next time,” the pretty boy said in a soft voice and Haeyoon can’t help but notice how these three boys were so out of place in the mellow atmosphere of the icecream parlor. Their aura and physical appearances were just so striking that they don’t…fit in the place. Then there’s a weird feeling in the pit of her stomach that she can’t quite figure out.

She gave another awkward bow before walking past them but just as she was about to disappear from their sight, the one with spiky hair called her attention.

“Hey,” his smooth deep voice echoing through the hallway made her look back. “Have we met before?”

Her caramel-brown eyes widened a fraction.

Yes, that was what she actually felt...

She shook her head no and muttered, “I don’t think so,” before completely walking away.

...odd familiarity.

They were total strangers to her but she can’t find it in herself to be scared of them. They felt familiar though their faces were unfamiliar to her. Have they actually met before? But she can’t recall them no matter how hard she tried. Who are they? Why did they felt so strangely familiar? 

She slid back in her seat across Taehyung with her mind still drifting to the three strangers. She didn’t notice the worried look the boy was giving her.

“Hey…” Taehyung trailed off when he saw the troubled look on the girl’s face. He reached a hand towards her forehead, his forefinger gently flattening the soft crease between her eyebrows. “You okay?”

Haeyoon was pulled out of her stupor when she felt Taehyung’s hand and quickly offered a smile to reassure him that everything was fine. “Uh, yeah, I was just..uhm…thinking about our assignment, yeah, it’s kinda hard, don’t you think?”

Taehyung pinched her cheek before retracting his hand and flashing her a crooked grin. “Do you want me to help you?” he asked after swallowing a spoonful of strawberry icecream. “I can drop by your house if you want.”

Haeyoon cracked a smile. “Wow, Kim Taehyung will help me with my assignment,” she feigned amazement. “Won’t it be the other way around?”

“Hey, that was rude! I was just trying to help here, so take it or leave it,” the boy said with an indignant pout, making Haeyoon giggle and soon enough Taehyung was laughing along with her.

“I was just kidding,” she grinned before leaning on the table to ruffle the boy’s already unruly orange hair. “Sure, we can do our assignments together later then maybe you could join us for dinner.”

Taehyung bit his lip, trying to suppress the face-splitting grin that wanted to break out on his handsome face so badly. The girl had no idea how much he was enjoying times like this with every fiber of his being. She had no idea how his young heart would flutter everytime she smiles at him. And she definitely had no idea of what he truly felt for her. But he wouldn’t dare tell her anything about it in fear of changing everything between them for the worst. No, he wouldn’t risk it and have her avoiding him. Maybe in the right time, he would confess, but it’s absolutely not now. For the meantime, he would content himself staying by her side with the mask of a ‘bestfriend’.

“Wait, I’ll think about it,” he said, earning him a look from Haeyoon that bordered between disbelief and disappointed which he found adorable. He paused for a few seconds before continuing, “Okay, if you insist.”

The girl snorted and just shook her head before shoving a spoonful of cookies and cream icecream into . Her hand froze in mid-air when she saw the three boys again from the corner of her eyes. They were occupying a table a few feet away from them. She tried hard to ignore them by distracting herself with Taehyung’s ramblings but they kept their intense gazes on her, making her uncomfortable. She was almost ready to drag herself and Taehyung out of the place when a female crew went over the three males’ table and gave them three take out boxes. She sighed in relief when they stood up and left the icecream parlor.

Who are they?

Was all Haeyoon could think about as she watched their disappearing backs from the glass window. 

Author's Note:

Hello!!! Even if my whole body was aching from work-out yesterday I still wanted to update for you my lovely readers. LOL! But it’s quite a boring chapter once again. I just thought that I have to explain some things so, yeah, this chapter ended with so many talk and talk and talk. But not everything was explained, a lot of things as well as characters were yet to be revealed, so please stay tuned!

Anyway, please keep the comments going, I really love reading your thoughts. ^_^

See you next chapter!