Chapter Text
The speakers thumped a lazy symphonic beat overhead. It was supposed to be ambient and quiet, but in a way that was supposed to relax, and comfort people while they talked amongst themselves and mulled life over the coffee, or tea, of their choice. While it probably did have that effect on the customers, Changkyun found that it made him restless. There was no flow to the sound, no rhythmic timbre of voices telling a story, trying to be heard in a crowd that too often overlooks them, and he found that he hated the emptiness of it. He couldn’t wait for his shift to end. There was another battle tonight, and he was going to win this one he was sure of it. One of the guys he was supposed to face was a newcomer just like him. This should be nothing and once he faced off with this guy there was nothing standing between him and Yoongi. Yoongi had sway in the music production world. He just had to get to Yoongi and people finally would listen. He could get scouted as a lyricist and could finally take care of his family. He could make it so his father didn’t have to work so hard anymore like he had when Changkyun was growing up. He just had to win and he could be free.
Changkyun was tired of being stuck in Gwangju. He hadn’t always lived here, maybe that was why he wanted out so badly. His biological Mother had died when he was too young to understand, and his dad and brother had only ever claimed they’d left Korea for his dad’s work as a Hanahaki research specialist. First traveling to Israel and living there until he was five, then to the United States but when he’d turned eight years old they’d returned to Korea, and to Gwangju where his grandparents and their grandparents’ grandparents had been from. A long constant line of Lim children came from here and unless he could change that, it looked like his children would come from here too.
He wasn’t looking forward to the two-hour long train ride to Seoul for the competition tonight, but the battle, and the afterparty would no doubt be worth it. It always was, which was probably why his older brother always came with him under the pretense of giving their father peace of mind by watching his back. Yeah, he’d watch Changkyun’s back alright, Changkyun’s and every woman’s that walked by in a short skirt.
On the way home, he always passed an all-night convenience store that doubled as a flower shop before crossing the street to the bus stop, and taking the 5:00 pm bus three stops down to the residential area, and then walking the last four blocks to the path across from the train station, and walking up the stairs to the red wooden gate that separated his family’s yard from the street. Outside all you could really see is a wall with a few resilient strands of ivy and a couple of stubborn limbs that had overgrown the top of the wall to reach for the sunlight. Inside, however, there was a well-kept vegetable garden and a traditional style home that consisted of the main house and three separate structures that served as his and his brother’s bedroom, his dad’s room, and the largest belonged to his grandparents.
It was towards the main house that he was heading now. The sharp smell of spices and vegetables hit his nose and he knew his grandmother was making yukgaejang for dinner. The night was cool and peaceful with the light sound of his grandparents and his father’s voices coming from the open windows and screen door. He smiled a little and picked up his steps nearly falling sideways when his older brother came out of nowhere in particular and wrapped an arm around his neck like an oversized fishhook.
“So little brother, we going to Seoul again tonight?” His brother asked ruffling Changkyun’s hair as he often did knowing it annoyed the piss out of him.
“I’m going to Seoul, yeah. You don’t have to come with me.” Changkyun replied straightening his now mussed mop of hair before walking into the house and greeting his grandparents and father.
“You’re late.” His grandmother said stirring at the pot of food only to smack Changkyun’s brother on the knuckles when he grabbed a spoon from the drawer and attempted to scoop some of the soup out of the pot.
“Sorry Mamaw we were shorthanded again at the café.” He told her and plopped down none too gracefully at their kitchen table.
“Next time just call us. Your grandmother was worried and I’ve been busy so I can’t keep up with you kids all the time. Okay?” His father boredly muttered from where he was pouring over his notes in the corner of the large room.
“That’s enough of that. It is in the past. How about we all sit down and have some dinner? I think my one and only has out done herself this time boys,” his grandfather stood from where he had been watching TV to join Changkyun and his brother at the table. When their father made no move to leave his work the boys just rolled their eyes earning a stern look from their grandfather before he twisted to the side.
“Son that means you too.” He added only earning a noncommittal nod and the sound of more rustling pages.
“Now Siwon! And I better not beat you to that table.” Grandma Lim ordered as she was leaving the kitchen holding the large pot careful not to burn herself on the sides.
“Honey give the man some slack he is working hard for his family.” His grandfather spoke sweetly to the woman who pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes at him in return.
“Don’t ‘honey’ me. You told him to come to the table he should come to the damn table. While you are at it Siwon grab bowls for everyone. It is only fair since you let the soup get colder.” She said her stern brown eyes zeroing in on the boys’ father as he was halfway to sitting down. Their father, Siwon, scoffed and earned a death glare from his father as well as his mother.
“Who taught you to scoff at your mother? Go get the bowls before I grab them and beat you over the head with it for disrespecting my one and only like that. Geez make me lose my appetite to see that.” Their grandfather grumbled and the two boys barely managed to stifle their laughter. Their grandfather looked up and started chuckling lightly himself and shook his head.
When their grandmother started giggling herself and the sounds of their father grumbling like a scolded child hit their ears they couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled out of them in the hysteria of it all. His father was even laughing when he came back into the room and sat down at the table taking care to hand the individual bowls to the boys’ grandmother. Her sleeve stretched up revealing a small cluster of flowers tattooed on her wrist and Changkyun smiled as he looked over to his grandfather who had an identical mark on his hand. It was a sign that the two were destined for each other. It was their soulmate mark and it would be there forever. It had always struck Changkyun as a reminder that he had purpose on this planet. Those two people met so that his parents could fall in love and bring them all together for moments like this. It also made him wonder something about his father now that he thought about it, but he knew better than to ask about his mom.
“Thanks, mamaw the soup is amazing. I think grandpa was right about it. You’ve outdone yourself.” Changkyun said grinning.
“Hasn’t anyone ever taught you that sucking up to people is a bad thing.” Their father teased his youngest son and the rest of the table laughed at the embarrassed grimace on Changkyun’s face. Times like these made him happier as a father than anything. Both Changkyun and Jaehwan were technically adults now, and he felt a familiar mix of sadness and anger that their mother hadn’t been there to witness it mix in with his happiness.
“Dad is everything okay?” His youngest son looked at him with concern when He accidentally set his spoon down a little too hard.
“It’s fine. Finish your food. Don’t you boys have a competition to get to?” Siwon asked pointing at the off-center clock behind them.
“Crap. Come on you idiot we’re going to be late!” Changkyun practically swatted the spoon out of Jaehwan’s hand and snatched up his jacket rushing out the door. The train station was back past where he worked and if they missed the train to Seoul they missed the competition because another one wouldn’t show for two hours.
The two boys ran as fast as their legs would carry them whooping and hollering all the way down towards the train station. A few times one or the other would even stumble earning a taunt from his brother, but they made it with mere moments to spare.
“We almost missed the train because of your slow ass you know.” Jaehwan teased.
“Me? I’m not the one who crashed into the convenience store’s trash cans.” Changkyun threw back at him laughing at the memory of having to drag his brother away from where the clerk had been beating him with a broom for knocking the cans over.
“Hey, come on, That doesn’t count! You pushed me into it! Aish cramping my style before we even get to the club.” He complained shoving at the younger boy trying to throw him off balance from where he was holding the bar.
“The falling into the trash can made you smell better. I don’t see how you can wear that cologne and still get a date. Also, ‘cramping my style’? what are you 40?” Changkyun replied shrugging and tightening his grip so he didn’t fall on the woman sleeping in the seats behind him. Her light snores showed that she was resting peacefully, and remembering the last time they’d been on the train with her and woken her up the last thing he wanted to do was wake her again.
“So, who are you supposed to be going against tonight little brother?” Jaehwan asked. The woman stirred behind them at the almost too loud question and they both winced.
“I don’t know. Mark again and some guy named Jooheon I think. He’s new, but the rumor is he’s been tearing his way up the underground scene and is no joke. You actually going to watch this time or are you meeting up with that girl from last time?” Changkyun’s voice held a teasing air to it and he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively when he mentioned the girl from last time. A loud snort of laughter burst from his brother and he joined in with his own loud rumbling laughter.
“There are people trying to sleep you brats! Do you kids have no manners?!” the formerly sleeping woman’s shrill voice came from behind them earning a loud yelp, and Changkyun clumsily scrambling away because he was startled. His brother only laughed harder and Changkyun hit him over the head.
The train finally came to a stop at the right station and the two of them scrambled off still mumbling apologies to the woman in between fits of laughter and shoving each other around. If you would have asked her she’d deny it, but Changkyun could have sworn there had been a small amused smile on her face when they got off the car.
When they arrived at the right club Changkyun went over to where the other rappers were and was met by a loud and cheerful greeting.
“I.M. you made it. We were beginning to worry you’d finally chickened out.” Mingyu said clasping his hand and giving him a short hug before letting him regain his balance.
“Not a chance.” Changkyun replied and grinned.
“I don’t know man if I were going to pick a night to back out it would be tonight. I heard you’re facing Yoongi for the final if you beat Jooheon. I’m telling you I.M he freaking mopped the floor with Vernon last week.” Mingyu stage whispered and Vernon leveled him with a glare. Mingyu just smiled at his best friend and Vernon turned back to the pretty brunette girl that he was talking to. Changkyun thought that he noticed the flash of a flower on Vernon’s arm and saw a mark on the girl next to him.
“Did Vern get marked?” He asked looking closer at the way that the two of them were standing together.
“Yeah, stupid idiot is always losing things. Last week he lost his wallet at a coffee shop and that girl Jennie came running out after him, and now here we are. I mean would you look at that sap? If I hadn’t mentioned the battle against Jooheon he would have never looked up at us.” Mingyu replied. This time his voice was kept low and serious. The marks weren’t something that people really talked about often. Not after high school when they all learned the real cost of being tied to someone else and what could happen if it all went wrong.
“At least he’s happy. I mean some people never meet their soulmate. That’s got to be worse, right? We should practice. I heard you have to go against Jooheon before he can get to me and I have to get past that guy Mark.” Changkyun changed the subject not wanting to get further on the subject of incompletes.
“Yeah. Jeez they really are trying to knock you out of the competing circles, tonight, aren’t they? I mean I knew about Jooheon and Agust D, but Mark too? Shit if you get past this you deserve Yoongi’s spot. Let’s just hope your brother can keep out of trouble tonight.” Vernon had finally escaped his soulmate long enough to catch up with the others and had just barely heard Changkyun mention Mark’s name.
“I’m not worried. I mean Mark’s good, but he only just barely beat Coups last time. It’s Yoongi I’m not too sure I can take head to head.” Changkyun admitted.
“If what Vernon’s been telling me is true if anyone can beat Yoongi its you, or Namjoon. I mean I think Lisa could at least take BamBam, but since she’s in the girl’s competition that would be a challenge.” A girl’s sweet voice hit Changkyun’s ears and he turned around.
“Oh, sorry guys this is Jennie. She’s my soulmate. Hey Mingyu, I just found out that her and a friend have been performing in the girl’s competition for the past month. I can’t believe we didn’t meet before yesterday, can you?” Vernon asked. Mingyu rolled his eyes at Vernon’s excited tone and gesturing. It really wasn’t like Vern to be this animated, but Changkyun couldn’t bring himself to stop him. It was clear though that if Mingyu had to hear about Jennie one more time he was going to explode. Mingyu hadn’t known Vernon all his life but for the last few years of high school and starting university the two had been inseparable brothers and Changkyun guessed that having Vernon be all about Jennie wasn’t going to be easy on him.
“Hey Vern, me and Mingyu are going to head over to the stage area Minhyuk should start calling for competitors soon.” Changkyun said interrupting his friend’s boisterous monologue about his soulmate.
“Oh… right. Do you guys want me to come with you?” Vernon looked over his shoulder at Jennie where she was waiting.
“Nah man. You go have fun with your girl. Come on Mings we got battles to win.” Changkyun chuckled a little and slung an arm over Mingyu’s shoulder before heading towards the stage.
“Hey Mingyu, I.M.!” Vernon called out over the crowd noise and the two turned back to look at him.
“Thanks, I owe you one!” He shouted again and gave a wide smile before running over and lifting the small woman up in his arms and kissing her like she held the very air he breathed.
“Come on let’s leave them to it man.” Changkyun said turning the younger boy back to their destination.
“Are you guys ready or not?!” A higher pitched male voice rang out over the crowd then spurred loud cheering. Changkyun had to resist the urge to laugh at his friend’s mc skills. To be honest even though he was a great radio host Minhyuk didn’t really suit the rap battle MC type. As far as Changkyun could tell he didn’t particularly like it either, but you did what you had to do to pay the bills right? It was the same reason that Changkyun himself had two part-time jobs. All he really wanted was to be a songwriter but instead he was a barista, and a motorcycle delivery person.
“Okay, okay, will you settle down please? Now before I introduce the first competitors I have to welcome back our reigning champions. As for our first champion she is a special lady who goes harder than some of the men I know and most definitely the Queen of hearts here ladies and gentlemen can I get a big round of applause for our baddest female, CL!!!” Minhyuk announced the woman and she came out smiling brightly at the crowd wearing a fuzzy oversized coat and heels, but not much else.
“You know if I hadn’t heard her myself I would have never guessed.” Mingyu leaned in next to Changkyun and earned a laugh from the older boy. Mingyu did have a point though this girl didn’t seem like much of a threat at first glance, but looks were deceiving in her case.
“Alright. Alright boys calm yourselves her soulmate is in the world somewhere,” Minhyuk said earning the laughter of the crowd.
“Okay next up though he lacks a little in the dancing department he makes up for it by being the dimpled cutie who’s a monster on the mic please welcome back RM!!!!!!” At the sound of his name a guy with a swaggered walk and a pair of sunglasses covering his eyes came up on stage. During the daytime if you crossed him he was usually in a suit, but now he was wearing a baggy t-shirt and jeans with holes in the knee and a pair of bright red converse high-top shoes. His hair was a dirty blond color now instead of the purple shade it had been a couple weeks before and Changkyun thought this color suited him better.
“Okay not to cut things short but we do have a battle to get to so its time to introduce the last of our underground champions. A couple months ago he was the new kid that knocked T.O.P out of his underground king title with his tongue technology and he is still killing it as the fastest rapper with the smile sweet as sugar. Ladies and bros Agust D!!!!” Minhyuk introduced and what he said next was overtaken by cheers. I.M. and Mingyu whooped and hollered along with the rest of them. Back stage everyone supported each other and had even grown to be friends, but once he hit that stage Yoongi would be his competition and nothing more. Yoongi was shorter than RM, but he was still a full head taller than the tiny framed man that he called his soulmate. He’d dyed his hair white again recently. At this rate he was sure to have it fall out, but who was Changkyun to judge?
After a few more jokes and chatter from the champions on stage Minhyuk finally moved to announce the first round of challengers. The first up were Vernon and Jackson, followed by J-hope and S-Coups, then Mingyu and Jooheon hit the stage, and finally it was his turn to face off against Mark. Minhyuk passed him on the way down and patted him on the shoulder.
“Hey Kyunnie, one more thing,” Minhyuk called before he made it to the top step.
“What’s that?” Changkyun asked with a light scoff.
“You lose this round to Tuan and you are making me Minnie Mochas for the next month while I replay the video of your dumbstruck face.” Minhyuk gave him the biggest smile and laughed a little and Changkyun couldn’t help, but laugh with him.
“Call, but just for that you little shit if I beat him no more Minnie Mochas for the next two months.” Changkyun said, saluted, and ran up the rest of the stares with his friend still floundering like a fish behind him. Minhyuk had grown up with him in Gwangju and when the two of them started high school they met Kihyun who had turned out to be the missing piece to an already perfect friendship. A few years passed and when graduation came around Kihyun got an internship with a photography company in Seoul and Minhyuk moved to an apartment up there as well to be closer to the college. The offer had always been there for Changkyun to move with him, but about the time he was going to his grandfather became sick and could no longer run the café, so he continued his classes online and took up the slack. It wasn’t his dream, but he was happy running things from the background and being able to help his family. He made it up to where Mark was standing and gave him a cocky sort of smirk.
“Heads or tails man.” The DJ asked him. He was about to answer when he heard someone cussing and his brother’s voice telling the guy to calm down. He looked over just in time to see Jae get clocked in the jaw. Damn it. Why did he have to be like this?
“Mark your win. I forfeit.” He hopped off the stage, and ran headlong shoving between the crowd until he reached the guy who was now on top of his brother slamming his fist down hard into his face.
“Jae when are you ever going to learn?” He asked, and the girl’s boyfriend paused his pride defending overkill to look back at him.
“Get lost pipsqueak this doesn’t concern you.” The stranger stood, and he was taller and wider than Changkyun had originally expected. Fuck. This wasn’t going to be easy.
“Now see, that’s where you’re wrong, I just had to forfeit the first round because you and your dumb ass friends here attacked my brother over a girl who isn’t even your soulmate. It’s sad, really, if she was willing to let my brother cross the line over a drink she’d leave you in a heartbeat.” He’d leaned up against the bar and adopted a mocking tone. The big man looked at his girlfriend whose eyes shifted filled with guilt at being caught. While the big guy was focused on her Changkyun moved to help his brother off the ground. Minhyuk and his friend Kihyun came over to help and a crowd of curious club goers was already starting to form wondering why Changkyun had left the stage.
“You’d really leave me just like that?” The guy demanded shock clear in his voice and all thoughts of Jaehwan or Changkyun leaving his mind. She used it as an opportunity and wrapped her arms around his waist with a sweet smile.
“Of course not, baby. Are you really going to believe that smart mouthed pipsqueak over me?” She asked turning the tables and giving changkyun a devilish smirk when he got caught trying to get his brother away from them. Shit.
“Why can’t you ever find a nice small-town girl in the café you idiot? Min, Ki, take him, will you?” Changkyun passed his brother off to the two of them and turned around to face the guy who was now seething. His girlfriend had her hands on his waist standing behind him now, and two of his friends who’d watched the entire affair were now moving from their drinks at the bar and preparing to get up if he even looked like he would lose the fight. Why did idiots like this come in threes?
“You really want to start a fight like this? Three on one?” he asked trying to gauge what Jolly green was going to throw at him first. The first thing he felt was a heavy thud right into his chest as he was tackled. The two of them went careening back towards the bar and stools were being knocked over almost faster than the patrons could climb out of them to get out of harms way. Even with that Changkyun had luckily been able to get the upper hand feeling flesh and bone shift between the punches and returns that each of them were throwing. He was getting hauled off the guy when others started to join the fight in his defense. Vernon on one side with Jennie watching worriedly from the crowd with what had to be Lisa holding her back and a guy he didn’t recognize. He couldn’t really see the other guy all that well just a tuft of blond hair and broad shoulders, but the fight broke out again with a vengeance as more people got involved trying to either protect their friends or their girlfriends from being hurt.
All Changkyun really could focus on was staying upright and not getting hit again. Everywhere he would turn it seemed like another person was there with a flying fist and a problem with him because they were friends with that first guy. He was busy blocking a hit that was meant for his jaw when something hard slammed into his ribs throwing him and the man who’d tried to hit him off balance. This time though instead of his friends a bouncer was the one to help him up. He and his brother along with the initial three were escorted to the door nursing injuries and being fretted over by different women and friends.
The owner followed them all out to the door and stopped just inside the frame. “I should press charges but since nothing but a couple of glasses were broken and none of the patrons or staff were hurt to badly consider this a warning. All of you are banned for two weeks. If after that I see any of you in here causing trouble that’s it. I will stop allowing these events to be held here. Do you understand?” He asked crossing his arms. Each of them glanced between each other and nodded. Any fight they had was settled inside the club. Now all they wanted to do was get home and nurse their injuries.
When Changkyun woke up the next morning everything ached, and his head was pounding as he stumbled out of bed. Was it just him or had that alarm clock gotten louder? He didn’t think he’d had that many drinks the night before. In fact, he only remembered having the one before the battle had started and then all hell broke loose. Damn his brother for his uncanny ability to charm women and his short temper. He really couldn’t take him anywhere at this rate. Gravel crunched under Changkyun’s shoes as he headed from his bedroom to the main house where he could hear food cooking in the kitchen, and music on the radio pouring out the door. That’s weird his grandmother hated having the volume up that high. Come to think of it he hadn’t seen his brother when he woke up that morning so maybe it was him in the kitchen.
“Well if it isn’t Mike Tyson himself.” His brother teased when he walked in.
“Dude can you turn that thing down? If Grandma Lim hears that we’re both dead.” Changkyun pointed to the radio and frowned when his brother looked at him like he was crazy.
“Earth to idiot. The radio is too loud.” Changkyun repeated and snapped his fingers in front of his brother’s face.
“Changkyun the radio is almost all the way off. How hard did you get hit last night?” The second Jaehwan told him about the radio it was like a switch flipped in his mind and all the sounds that had been too loud to bear before were a mere static in the background.
“Whatever little brother, hey while you’re standing there can you put the spices back in the cabinet?” His brother said pointing to a series of vials and jars that went into the overhead cabinet to Changkyun’s left.
“Yeah, sure thing.” The younger boy said. Changkyun picked up a few of them and moved to put them up when a sharp pain wracked through his left side and into his chest making it hard to breathe for a moment. The bottles clattered back to the counter and his brother rushed to his side.
“Are you alright? What the hell just happened? Changkyun? Changkyun!” His brother’s eyes filled with panic as he yanked and twisted him trying to figure out why his arms would just give out like that.
“My ribs.” Changkyun wheezed. It felt like someone had stuffed a sub-woofer in his chest and turned the bass all the way up the way his muscles and nerves were throbbing.
“What?!” His brother’s worried demand warred with the sound of his pulse in his ears. Oh god he was going to pass out if this kept up. Broken ribs didn’t normally hurt this bad. He tried remembering the last time he’d had a rib injury in a taekwondo class when he was a kid. It had hurt, but he hadn’t blacked out from it. Why did this feel different, and why this morning instead of when he got hit last night? This was insane, right? What’s…. going… on? His mind slowed, and he registered one last thing, it felt too warm. Everything was too warm, and he felt like there was a weight laying on him, and it was all way too freaking warm. Then, after a moment that seemed to stretch out too long everything went black.
There was a sharp smell irritating his nose. He blinked a couple times and tried to pull away from whatever was making that acid sting in his nostrils. When Changkyun finally opened his eyes, and focused he was met by the worried faces of his family.
“Welcome back to the land of the living. Can you tell me your name?” A bright voice met his ears and he turned to face a woman in an EMT uniform. Decaf mocha with two pumps of caramel. His mind registered where he’d heard her voice before as the fog was clearing from his head. She had light brown hair, chocolate colored eyes and usually wore nurse’s scrubs when she came in. Her name was Bora or something like that.
“Lim Changkyun. What happened?” Changkyun looked around again absorbing the details of the emergency crew and his family member’s worried expressions scattered around the kitchen.
“Honestly I was hoping you could tell us that. Your brother said you were complaining about a pain in your ribs when you collapsed.” She prompted no doubt trying to get him to remember the events from before he wound up on the floor.
“Yeah, last night Jae and I went to an event in Seoul. I got into a fight and someone elbowed me in the ribs. I didn’t think anything of it for real. I mean I was winded when it happened, so I probably could’ve gotten it checked out. My brother and I were both tired, and it was late, so we came home instead.” Changkyun muttered trying to remember everything that happened from the night before.
“Mind if I look?” She asked pointing to his shirt. He nodded then winced when her fingers and the fabric from the shirt scraped across his tender skin and earned a sympathetic look from the male EMT that had come with Bora.
“Whoever it was they got you pretty good.” The male EMT chuckled a little trying to lighten the mood when he saw the bruise, but he earned a glare from Changkyun’s grandmother instead.
“Apparently. I can’t say anything for sure, but it looks like you have a small contusion on your ribs.” Bora said looking at the place with concern and consideration.
“A what now?” His brother asked.
“It means his ribs are bruised.” Changkyun’s father was the one to explain and Changkyun could see his grandparents visibly relax upon finding out that he wasn’t seriously injured.
“That’s correct, but I think I know why it affected him so strongly as well. Has anything else happened this morning since you woke up?” Bora asked him waiting for the answer and bobbing a little to keep her legs from giving out in the crouched position she was still in from waking him. She was going through the motions now checking the rest of him for the signs of a concussion or another injury that could have been caused by the fall this morning instead of the fight from the night prior.
“Like what?” Changkyun looked at his dad hoping that he could clear up what she was really trying to ask, but his father only shrugged.
“like a sound that isn’t normally noticeable being obnoxiously loud, or something you normally like eating tasting different, or even a light being too bright for your eyes.” Bora said.
“No? I mean there was that incident with the alarm clock and the radio this morning, and that weird moment before I passed out, but so what? I had a couple of drinks last night and was a little hung over this morning.” Changkyun shrugged. She giggled a little when he said the bit about being hung over and Changkyun could feel his annoyance bubbling up.
“Is there a point to these questions?” His grandfather finally spoke up. Changkyun had watched him shift back and forth for the past couple of minutes eyes glancing around at the different people and the urge to check on Changkyun for himself plain on the older man’s face. His grandfather didn’t like hospitals, and if Changkyun was being honest with himself, having all these EMTs and the equipment in his home couldn’t be making his grandfather any more comfortable with the idea.
“There is sir. Your grandson’s mark has appeared.” The woman replied. She was smiling like she’d expected them all to be happy, but the smile faltered when she was only met with pure and utter shock.
“What?! No… no it didn’t. How could it? I would’ve known if I… If they… There are signs for this type of thing! I wouldn’t have left the club if I had… if they had…” He was trying to breathe in between the words and panic that kept coming in waves. Changkyun had to grit his teeth against the pain when he twisted to see the place on his side where she was looking. Sure enough, there in the middle of all the reddish discoloring of the bruise was the image of a single red rose in full bloom. Great. He hated roses.
Changkyun tried to search his mind for when he could have gotten the mark, and who could have the match to it, but the night be for had been an overwhelming blur of possible answers. Not only had he gotten elbowed there by god only knows who, but his friends, and girls he’d never even met had been surrounding him and making sure he was okay. Those were just the ones he remembered. There were probably countless others from the time he’d arrived at the club with his brother to the time he left. Changkyun couldn’t hold himself like that any longer and remain conscious so he just let himself flop back against the cabinet groaning in protest against the shift of his weight around the injured muscle and the throbbing that was echoed by the sound of his pulse in his ears.
“Why does it feel like this? I feel like I went three rounds in a ring with that MMA fighter from Seoul, and lost.” Changkyun laughed off his embarrassment at still sitting on the floor with the joke.
“To be honest it could be any number of things, but my best guess is that the person who gave you the bruise is your soulmate. To be honest though it seems like the injury isn’t severe so if you don’t think you need to come with us to the hospital we can leave you and your family to talk.” Bora smiled at him and waited for a moment. Changkyun thought about it then shook his head.
“I’m good. I’ll make sure to save you a Decaf Mocha at the café next time you come by.” Changkyun said then held a hand out to his brother who moved to help him stand.
“Thanks. I guess we’ll get going then. It seems like you all have a lot to discuss. If you have any more problems don’t be afraid to come by the hospital or go to a clinic to get checked up. In the mean time I would suggest calling work and letting them know that you can’t work anything harder than the register for the next couple of days. It will be too overwhelming for you right now because of the bond. Come on Taeil.” Bora said standing and walking out the door with the other EMT in tow. She moved her fingers through her hair and shifted some behind her ear where Changkyun noticed a small baby’s breath mark by her ear. So, she did know what he was going through. He didn’t have to wonder long about who her soulmate could be when he looked up and saw the way that her partner, Taeil, looked at her. He looked at her like she carried all the answers to the world and the smile she returned to him could have rivaled the sun in Taeil’s eyes. The two of them left with a wave, but not another word. The door slid home behind them and Changkyun breathed a sigh of relief that the pain was no longer blinding, and he was back to just hearing the normal buzz of the house.
“Who was it?” Changkyun’s father was the first to break the silence.
“What?” Changkyun asked. He was still feeling confused and with the door closed there was now a sharp acrid smell filling the kitchen. Jaehwan must have burnt whatever it was he’d been cooking earlier.
“Your soulmate. Who is it?” His father asked again getting his familiar ‘work scowl’ as Changkyun had come to recognize it.
“I don’t know.” Changkyun said.
“It’s your soulmate how can you ‘not know’?” His father pressed.
“Dad, last night was a bit of a mess. I got into a fight and it got out of-” Jaehwan started trying to defend his little brother, but his father raised a hand silencing him.
“Changkyun. Think about it carefully. Who hit you? Was it a woman? A man?”
“I don’t know dad. I mean seriously I just found out my rib isn’t actually broken and that I have a giant rose on my side. Look I need some air. I’ll see you when I get home.” Changkyun said walking towards the door.
“How can you just not know?!” His father repeated his voice raising. Changkyun stopped in the door frame and turned back around.
“I just don’t, alright? Do you know how many times I had someone touch that spot last night? I sure as hell don’t! Jesus this wasn’t even my fault. If Jaehwan hadn’t gotten in the fight with that girl’s boyfriend I wouldn’t have jumped in and we’d be having a normal Saturday morning right now,” Changkyun snapped.
“Don’t talk to your father like that.” His Grandmother defended.
“Whatever, I have to call work anyway. I was supposed to drive today, but that is apparently out of the question now.” Changkyun replied then walked out of the door dialing his phone as he went. When his boss for the delivery service finally let him off for the day and he made sure to check that he actually was off the schedule at the café that day he plopped down on the floor to his room. He had already rolled up the sleeping mat and that left the floor bare and a few sparse pieces of furniture around the room in a sort of spot the difference mirror image of each other one side for him and the other for his older brother Jaehwan. A soulmate. Somewhere out there his soulmate was either sitting there just like he was wondering what went wrong or… No he refused to think like that. His soulmate would be missing him too and wracking their brain for his face the way he was for theirs. Maybe he could call the club? His thumb hesitated over the dial button after he searched the number up but he eventually just exited out and let out a cry of frustration. There was a knock on the door and he thought his eardrums were going to bust.
“hey! Do you have to be so loud; what the hell?!” Changkyun demanded. His brother opened the door and he heard a distinct creak in the hinges that he hadn’t noticed before. Probably because he hadn’t been mutating like an X-men character at the time.
“Thought you might want some water.” His brother was whispering, Changkyun could tell from the way his voice sounded, but that was the only indicator since he sounded as loud as he normally did. This would get annoying quickly. Changkyun thought to himself not noticing that he couldn’t hear or wasn’t paying attention to what Jaehwan had said.
“Water? Geez even with bionic hearing you don’t listen.” Jaehwan muttered.
“Sorry, and yeah sure I’d love some.” Changkyun held his arm out reaching for the bottle. His brother handed it to him then plopped down next to him and opened his bottle taking a large drink from it. Changkyun moved to do the same and before he could get the cap off it felt like his hand was burning as if he’d spilled coffee on it.
“Ah! Ah ah ah! Damn it!” He dropped the bottle and water spilled all over his shirt and jeans making them stick to his skin in odd places.
“What happened?” Jaehwan said running to get a towel and moping up the spill before it could soak into the wood. Changkyun was busy blowing on his hand and shaking it trying to get it to cool off, and stop stinging when he could have sworn he heard the distinct sound of someone muttering about the tv volume and their girlfriend waking up. Staring at the bottle of water in confusion something his soulmate education class teacher had said finally dawned on him. His soulmate. That person spilled coffee on themselves. Maybe that explained what he’d felt earlier too.
“Am I supposed to have all this weird shit happening to me at one time?” He looked to his brother like he might have some answers, but there was nothing.
“How the hell should I know? As far as I’m concerned besides dad, and grandma and grandpa Lim, you are the expert here. What are you going to do about finding your soulmate? I don’t exactly think running around Seoul lifting your shirt up is going to work,” Jaewhan said. Changkyun laughed at the thought and sighed when his ribs throbbed in response.
“Anyway, at least I know one thing. Whoever it is likes coffee.” He kept the part about the girlfriend to himself not wanting to alarm his brother, or bring up the possibility that his soulmate was either male or a lesbian. He hated the idea of having someone bound to him that would never be able to love him. “It happened sometimes,” his dad had told him once when he asked, but had refused to answer when Changkyun asked what happened to those people.
Working in the Hanahaki Reasearch and Treatment Foundation his father knew all too well what happened when soul bonds went horribly horribly wrong. It didn’t happen often enough that it was a real threat to public health, but it did happen. Hanahaki, or the Blossom Disease as some called it, was the result of a damaged soul bond. It caused the afflicted person to have an excess of flower petals in the lungs until there were too many to breathe and they suffocated. There was also an even rarer strain of the disease that had a completely different effect on the afflicted person, but there had only ever been one record of that strain and it remained incomplete because the doctor writing it had been her own subject in that case and died in a freak car accident before she could complete her work. Some people just had rotten luck.
“Yo, Kyunnie you even listening?” His brother smacked him on the arm and he glared before realizing that he’d gotten lost in his train of thought again.
“What?” He asked delayed like he usually was when he had been thinking too hard about something.
“How do you know they like coffee?” Jaehwan asked again.
“My hand. It felt like I got burned by a coffee spill. My teacher in high school mentioned something about feeling things that your soulmate feels. I think that person spilled coffee or something on their hand.” Changkyun told him.
“dude that’s got to suck. What if she gets on her time of the month? Or when you two have kids?” Leave it to Jaehwan to think about these things. Right now though all Changkyun could think about was what the club owner said. Banned for two weeks. How was he supposed to find that person if he couldn’t return to the place he lost them?
Jooheon woke up feeling too warm. His hair was sticking to his neck and his lungs couldn’t seem to get enough room to inhale quite the way he needed to get oxygen. His ribs felt bruised and tender and something was weighing down on him and keeping him pinned to the bed. He opened his eyes and realized that the unfamiliar weight was that of his girlfriend’s body.
“what the hell?” he muttered and shifted to sit up. She grumbled and rolled off of him and hugged onto the pillow on her other side like always without even waking up to register what she was doing. He took in a giant lungful of air and slumped against the cool headboard reveling in the cool air that had taken her place. It was strange. He couldn’t remember ever overheating this badly when he slept with her. Not since the first few nights before they’d really started dating, but they hadn’t actually slept much during that time either.
He smiled down at her when a too loud snore escaped her sleeping for then decided he would go and make coffee knowing full well that she and his roommates would be sluggish without it. He didn’t mind rooming with Hoseok and Hyeonwoo and he loved having his girlfriend stay over, but without the coffee as a peace offering the three of them were intolerable. Some mornings she was sluggish without that first cup of coffee and he found it adorable, but others those cute sluggish mornings were sharp barbs, and whines that the others were a waste of his time. Then the inevitable of his friends telling him they didn’t get why he stayed with her if she was such a bitch as soon as she left for work always followed. He would rather deal with the bitter tasting kisses to that any day.
After he got the coffee started he turned on the TV to the usual news channel and almost broke the remote trying to turn it back off. God which one of those assholes turned it up so loud if he woke Joy now she’d never calm down. He tried turning it on again ready to mute it so that he could turn the volume down but found there was no need. The volume was barely audible above the bubbling of the coffee pot.
A door creaked from across the apartment and his roommate’s pale muscular chest came into view from the door. A towel was wrapped around his waist and his hair was damp. He wandered into the kitchen and stuck a bagel in the toaster then nodded at Jooheon.
“Jesus Wonho put some clothes on, will you? Joy is sleeping in my room.” Jooheon said finally focusing on what his best friend was, or rather wasn’t wearing.
“You’re just worried that if she sees all of this she’s going to leave you.” Hoseok teased walking back around to the toaster and catching the bagel as it popped into the air from the toaster and took a bite wiggling his eyebrows at Jooheon.
“Trust me her leaving me after seeing your pale ass is the least of my worries. Her going blind might be a more likely worry. Here take this and clothes.” Jooheon said passing a mug of coffee to his friend and shoving him lightly in the direction of his room. It was quiet once again and he started mixing up the ingredients for pancakes when the front door opened.
“Nice run?” Jooheon looked up from the pancakes to his other roommate. Shownu nodded and took a large drink from his water bottle. The MMA fighter always woke up ahead of everyone he had to train and stay in shape even when he wasn’t scheduled to fight. Heonwoo was quiet compared to Hoseok and Jooheon supposed that was why this whole arrangement worked out. The only thing that disrupted it in the others’ opinion was Joy. At the thought of her passing through Jooheon’s mind she wandered into the room. She was a sight even rumpled from sleep she’d thrown on one of his t-shirts before coming out and it brushed delicately against her thighs almost like the designer dresses she favored so much. He was distracted from what he was doing, and coffee splashed over the top of the mug burning his hand.
“Ah shit!” The mug clattered to the ground and coffee spilled everywhere. He shook what was left of the rapidly cooling liquid off his hand damage already done and walked over to the sink to rinse the burn.
“What happened?” She had run to the edge of the kitchen and was looking at the mess and Jooheon with concern.
“I just burned my hand that’s all. No need to worry. Don’t step in here though, okay? I don’t want you to cut your foot on the glass.” Jooheon said his hand still under the running water.
“Okay I won’t, but Jooheonie do you mind pouring up some more coffee? I don’t want to be mean, but you did just tell me to stay out of the kitchen.” She leaned over the counter a little and batted her eyelashes at him. Shownu rolled his eyes and just joined Jooheon in the kitchen poured up a mug of coffee and handed it to her without a word. She gave him an annoyed look, but took the mug anyway and sashayed her way back into Jooheon’s room.
“why do you let her treat you like that man? You’re her boyfriend not a slave.” Heonwoo asked breaking his silence and bending down to help Jooheon get the bigger pieces of glass.
“What am I supposed to do man? Wait for my soulmate to just pop out of thin air? I can’t do that. I can’t wait for someone who may be a million miles away.” Joheon said. Even as he said it he wondered if he would ever find that person. Everyone had someone, but his father’s drunken words came back to haunt him. Who in their right mind would love someone like you?