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Hell isn’t as dark as humans believe it is. There aren’t random fires spreading around the dark lands and it’s not as terrifying as they make it seem. In fact, there’s much about hell and heaven that humans don’t know about. Relying on the words of their bibles or scripts that some “prophets” wrote without questioning them was a faulty mistake and the spread of religion that followed the years to come in the human world made everything different.
For as there shall be a heaven then there must also be hell, but neither must be more powerful than the other and both must balance one another out.
It is true that Lucifer did corrupt the human mind, and that he was the first angel to be banned from heaven and live the rest of his life in what came to be known as hell. His greed and jealousy of the humans led to his downfall and ultimately to live the rest of his years in solitude. But as such came compassion and understanding and from there on a balance was formed. As punishment Lucifer was to live in Hell and rule over those who entered his realm.
The original Lucifer died but to keep the balance a new ruler was announced and then another, never was Hell left without a ruler. More fallen angels joined Lucifer taking on tasks and making sure that things were kept as they should, unlike the words on the bible they were not only known as demons but rather had their own name amongst them, they were known as “The Fallen”.
As Hell and Heaven were made to keep balance, so was the world and the humans. Once a person died their soul was randomly destined to go to either Hell or Heaven as servants. Morals were meant to keep the humans in order but the bad ones who had committed sins already had a place in Hell ready for them after their death.
And so, Hell wasn’t all as it seemed. It was a realm of lands vast and wide, everything made up of a dull color, a sun dimmed a soft orange forever the only light available, candles were lit throughout the lands and each Fallen, soul, and forgotten were to be ruled over by their chosen Lucifer.
At the age of 26, Kim Jongdae died.
Jongdae wasn’t meant to go to Hell. But maybe it was fate that led him there.
An angel messenger was in charge of ensuring that his soul made it to Heaven, where he would obtain his status as an Angel as well and live the rest of his existence as a servant of Heaven.
But the same day that that was supposed to happen, the angel messenger had dropped Jongdae’s soul from his bag. All other souls were safely held in his bag, except his. His soul dropped from the sky and landed into Hell. Someone noticed as soon as he entered Hell and they took his blue orbed soul into the palace where the current Lucifer now ruled over.
“Master,” a fallen with dark feathery wings of short stature and dark hair walked towards him, Jongdae’s soul gently on his hands “it appears that there’s a soul who does not belong in Hell.”
Lucifer took the soul from the Fallen and looked at its soft blue light, “It’s alright Kyungsoo, you may go now and continue with your duties I’ll take care of this.”
Kyungsoo nodded his head and walked out of the great hall.
Lucifer extended his arm and blew softly at the soul in hand, “Be reborn again human.”
The blue orb glowed a soft white before Jongdae was released. His appearance changed as soon as he stood before Lucifer. Like the other Fallen, he grew black wings as soon as his physical appearance formed and as well as a black collar wrapped around his neck but unlike the demons a halo ankle bracelet also presented itself and he gave off a very soft light only visible to those who were concentrating on him.
Jongdae’s eyes opened.
He didn’t know where he was or who stood in front of him. The last thing he remembers is walking to the bakery near his apartment in the cold weather and someone screaming at him as he crossed the light.
He looked at the man in front of him, he seemed pretty intimidating. The man had a dark robe and a black crown on top of his head.
“Welcome.”
Jongdae took a step back at the voice that resonated through the room. Something was wrong and he felt strange, his balance wasn’t all that great and there was a weird pressure in his back.
“Kim Jongdae, 26 years old, you had an older brother, nice parents and relatively a good life.”
Jongdae stared at the man in shock. He hadn’t spoken and yet this man knew everything about him. Also, he was starting to think he was going crazy because how else would explain the thing in his ankle and dark wings attached to his fucking back.
“Okay... first what do you mean “had” and where are we?” He couldn’t help the small waver of his voice as he tried taking in his surroundings. A part of him knew the answer already, his religious upbringing as a Catholic clearly made him realize who exactly he was standing in front of him but all of this felt too real to be a dream and that made him shudder subconsciously in fear.
Minseok looked at the young human no, young demon and took a deep breathe. It usually took some time for the dead human’s shock to pass.
“This my young one, is Hell.” Jongdae gasped his body visibly shaking, “Now don’t be too scared. It’s not as bad as it looks. You see, Hell has quite a few misconceptions but you’ll soon learn there’s much more to it. There’s order to everything here and we’ve all been assigned our roles. Just as I’m assigned to rule over Hell, you’ll be assigned over other tasks here in Hell as a servant.”
Jongdae couldn’t stop shaking. Hell? How was this even possible? Was he being punished, or had he done something immoral during his lifetime that had come to this.
Minseok shook his head, “you did nothing wrong young one. Your religion had nothing to do with you ending here and you aren’t being punished. If anything, you could say, you were destined to come here. Perhaps we can put the voice of yours to good use. From what I see you have a very lovely voice.”
Jongdae gulped, who was he to oppose to what Lucifer wanted. Heck it didn’t take a religious person to know that he was standing right in front of the most feared being in the world, although he didn’t look anything like the Lucifer he had been taught about.
“Haha” Minseok chuckled grimly shaking his head, “humans really like to over exaggerate things huh. Well I really can’t blame them as I was once human too. You see little one, most of us are destined for our roles the moment we’re born, whether we want to or not we are not in control. When I came here I was told I would become the next new ruler and as such had to accommodate and learn how to rule. The Fallen or demons as humans refer to them are of course fallen angels but a lot of them were also once humans. There are wandering souls in our land who roam without a destination after they die and the Forgotten are atoning for their sins in the secluded lands where they feel nothing but emptiness.”
Jongdae didn’t know how to process all the new information. There was so much to what Minseok just said that he couldn’t begin to comprehend. All his life he had been taught that God was just and treated everyone fairly and if you led your life being kind and righteous then there would be a place in Heaven for you. But now it feels like a bucket of cold water has been thrown at him.
How is it possible, that he was to reincarnate as a demon when he knows he has never done anything wrong.
“Do not fret too much about it Jongdae. It is just the way things are, God too has a Heaven to rule over but that doesn’t mean your time here will be horrible. We all make do with what we can.”
Minseok walked closer to Jongdae who couldn’t help but take a step back at the overwhelming presence in front of him. An array of emotions passed his eyes and Jongdae flinched when he noticed that just for a second Minseok had looked at him with pity until his neutral face returned.
“Even – even if it is all fate then. You tell me my King what exactly is my role here in Hell when I’m supposed to be serving Heaven.” Jongdae asked clenching his fists unconsciously.
Minseok sighed, “I cannot choose for you Jongdae. Rather you yourself will find your calling. The fallen who brought you here, Kyungsoo, the souls who come to Hell go to him and he’s the one that sends them to their designated places in Hell. There are others as well who just know what their meant to do once they arrive. I for one was taught for many years how to appropriately rule over this place. And please, don’t call me King, feel free to call me Minseok as most do.”
Jongdae didn’t know what overcame him with Minseok’s response but he did the only thing his mind could think of doing whenever he was extremely stressed out.
Jongdae opened his mouth and sang. His eyes closed and voice resonating throughout the huge hall room, he let himself get lost in whatever song his mouth was currently producing.
He didn’t even notice anything was happening all he could feel at the moment was reassurance that somehow, he’ll make it here.
When he held the last note, that’s when Jongdae opened his eyes. He was still in Hell and Lucifer, or Minseok, was still in front of him but to his shock the room had a soft glow around it and Minseok was staring at him in awe.
Jongdae could swore his eyes had been watery for only a minute before Minseok cooled his expression back. The room was still glowing softly and Jongdae felt a tinkling sensation in his ankle.
“Your voice,” Minseok walked closer to Jongdae “it’s beautiful.”
Jongdae’s face reddened. He was about to thank Minseok when the demon king suddenly grabbed his collar. It turned a deep red.
“From now on you will be our light. You will sing every day whichever song you desire at the top of this castle. Your voice will resonate throughout the lands and everyone will hear it. You can choose at what time you wish to go and you are free to wander the lands. The collar you have around you will protect you from anyone, no one but me can destroy it but I’ll also protect you.”
Jongdae’s surprised expression only made Minseok chuckle at the newborn Fallen.
“A fitting role for a half angel I would say,” Minseok murmured while turning away from him.
“Wait. I don’t understand. You just said you can’t choose the roles for us but you just gave me a role?” Jongdae hesitantly took a step forward, “Was it all a lie then.”
Minseok stopped walking.
“I see, we demons are still considered deceivers in the human world. I do hope you can come to understand how things work while you get accustomed to things here. For now, I have things to oversee but one of my fallen will show you around.”
Just before Jongdae could ask him what he meant by that Minseok had already vanished before his eyes. He was further surprised to note that Minseok had no wings attached to his back.
Jongdae couldn’t help the small yelp that escaped his lips when he felt a hand on his shoulder.
“Oh, I’m so sorry about that didn’t mean to frighten you little one.”
Jongdae turned around to face the fallen who was smirking down at him.
He glared back at the fallen who was just a few centimeters taller than him and was without a doubt handsome, not that he was going to ever say it aloud.
“You didn’t frighten me. And who are you calling little? Your childlike face tells me otherwise and I could probably be your hyung.”
He folded his arms together and made sure to put on his most serious expression.
However, the fallen simply laughed at Jongdae’s response.
“Haha, you’re right. You see I died when I was 24 but I came here before you and have been here for who knows how many centuries. So, by default that makes me older than you. I’ll call you hyung just because you seem like an interesting person. My name’s Jongin by the way.”
Jongin extended his hand out to Jongdae.
Jongdae couldn’t help the small smile that curved his lips upward.
“Fine. I’m Jongdae, under normal circumstances I’d say it’s nice to meet you but we’re in a rather abnormal place so where exactly are we going first? Minseok did say you were going to show me around.”
Jongin grabbed his hand and pulled. Jongdae felt his world spin and saw swirls of black envelop them before everything finally stopped. He was stunned to see that Hell was indeed how Minseok had described it. A soft orange illuminated the place, and there were parts darker than others.
“First, going outside of the castle would be a good place to start. Now just as any other place in the universe I’ll start by warning you that there are forbidden paces in our land. Although I doubt you’ll ever go to them the Forgotten or sinners as you were taught live in the darkest places where there is no light. The souls who wander around our lands simply are that, wandering souls with no clear destination, some are quite good gossipers though and quite entertaining. Other fallen are usually busy doing their tasks or roaming around. We also hold some festivities from time to time to keep us entertained, it can get quite boring when you’re here for so long.”
Jongdae listened intently while Jongin spoke. There was still so much for him to learn, so many questions he had but he guessed he now had an eternity for it all.
There was one question though he knew he had to ask before anything else, “Minseok hyung said I had to sing at the highest place on the castle would you happen to know where that is?”
“To sing? That’s new. I guess since it is Minseok hyung there must be a good reason for it. As far as I know the tower is the tallest part of the castle I could take you there right now.”
Jongdae nodded his head. Maybe he should have asked how exactly they were going to get there but before he could get a word out Jongin put his arms around his waist and pushed him back on his chest.
“Excellent, now I can also teach you how to fly. Talk about killing two birds with one stone huh.”
“Wait – wait! Fly I’m – not I can’t”
Jongin’s wings expanded and they took off. Jongdae had squeezed his eyes shut and finally opened them. It was exhilarating, the feel of the wind on his face and how alive he felt.
He could feel how big his smile probably was even though he was still terrified that they were up in the air.
“Now, your turn. Just feel your wings, they’re a part of you now. Expand them to their fullest and move them. You’ll know what to do.”
“No – wait Jongin I can’t! I really haven’t done any flying before and – “
He felt himself falling down. Oh God he was going to fucking die again wasn’t he and it was going to be all stupid Jongin’s fault and once his soul came back here he was definitely going to kick his ass.
But luckily for him. He really didn’t want to die again and he did what he believed was correct and expanded his wings and pushed up.
They were moving! His wings were moving!
“I told you, you could do it Jongdae hyung!”
“You brat! You’re lucky you can fly faster than me but just wait till I catch up to you!” Jongdae yelled back at Jongin who was flying a bit ahead of him and simply laughing.
“I got it. Sorry about that, but hey you can thank Kyungsoo hyung for that lesson he was the one who taught me as well after all. Now come on we’re almost to the top.”
And he was right. They were almost there, in front of Jongdae a was a tower with one window like entrance in which Jongin flew inside while Jongdae followed behind. Once inside Jongdae noticed that the place felt warm.
There was a calming feeling to it. Almost as though he could connect to the place, as if it was calling to him.
“Well here we are. This tower has been here for a long time. There really isn’t much known about this place and not that many of us are interested in it as well. I for one think it’s a pretty normal tower.”
Jongdae touched the walls of the tower. He felt a shiver down his spine, somehow this place felt alive to him.
“Hey, how about singing now. Minseok hyung did say you were to sing here. So maybe there’s a reason for it and we’ll get to find out.”
Jongdae nodded his head in agreement.
For a second he let himself think of his parents and his older brother. He missed them terribly but he only hoped they were doing alright.
With that in mind he knew which song he wanted to sing. A song that he often thought sang when he wanted to clear his mind of his doubts.
He opened his mouth and sang. To express his pain or maybe to comfort himself during this difficult moment. His eyes glistened with unshed tears and he looked out towards Hell, he didn’t notice the way the castle’s tower glowed brightly, the walls illuminating a soft blue and star shapes carving themselves around the tower. His ankle stung a little as his halo bracelet glowed and Jongdae was too focused on his song.
I will not cry cry cry
Wiping my tears and giving a smile
From here walking towards a different tomorrow
Don't say good bye bye bye
From now on and always
Because you will always be here in my heart
He held the last note and smiled. Even if he was never going to see them again Jongdae knew his parents and brother would be okay.
Jongdae turned to look at Jongin who was looking at him with shock.
“Jongin… what’s wrong?”
“You – Jongdae hyung you covered Hell all in a white warm light. Just what did you do?” He uttered touching the tower’s light that were all covered in star symbols.
“I’m not sure… I think the same thing happened when I was with Minseok hyung but it wasn’t that big then. You think he knew coming to the tower would cause this?”
Jongin released a shaky laugh, “Of course he would, that old demon knows a lot. But Jongdae more than that, I felt something I haven’t felt in a long time.”
Jongdae looked at him puzzled.
“What was it?”
“My human side. The longer you stay in Hell the more of your human side you lose, I found out the hard way. It’s true us demons may not be all that evil and tainted with hatred but we’re not exactly big on emotions anymore. Rather there’s the lack of emotions we have and sometimes when I’m by myself I wonder what it was back then when I was human.”
Jongin gave him a sad smile.
“I don’t resent being a demon. It’s not that bad you know I’ve met lots of great fallen here as well and they keep me sane.”
Jongdae couldn’t take it anymore and engulfed Jongin in a hug.
“Well I’m here now. And if there was a reason for me coming here then at the very least I’m glad I got to meet you too.”
He smiled brightly once he felt Jongin’s hands wrap around him too.
Perhaps Hell wasn’t as bad as it seemed.
----
Time moved differently in Hell, Jongdae learned. A few years had already passed since he arrived and things were interesting to say the least.
He found out that his duty to sing every day in the tower indeed engulfed Hell in a warm white light and that the other Fallen, and wandering souls as well were able to hear his voice each time he sang.
Whether it was a happy song, a slow one, or a sad song he decided to sing for the day he would always get praised by Jongin and the rest of the Fallen he had befriended throughout the years.
He spoke to Kyungsoo on his second day in Hell and found the slightly shorter Fallen to be quite a welcoming change. He was soft spoken at times and didn’t say much but was very observant and would speak when he had to. He did have his moments where he would open up and joke with them and Jongdae learned to cherish those times. There wasn’t a day when an orbit soul would go to him and he would leave to take it with him to Minseok.
Jongdae also met Yixing, another fallen who was almost as old as Minseok. Yixing was by far the kindest fallen he had met and was really good with healing wounds. Sure, there wasn’t a war going on between Heaven and Hell but Hell did still have some small creatures in the land that could be quite vicious. The dimpled Fallen would often visit him in the castle and would talk with him whenever he had time. Yixing was part of Minseok’s council so he wasn’t around much often.
And Jongin, Jongin was by far more like a little brother to him. He would always come to visit him each day and accompany him to the top of the tower whenever he sang. They would spend all day together roaming around Hell and finding fun things to do. Like the time they went on a day journey to gather fire lilies that grew only on the cold mountains of Hell which in other words didn’t make sense to Jongdae because the lilies as it turned out were pure white but engulfed in flames that weren’t harmful to touch.
Minseok, on the other hand was more of an enigma. He was difficult to understand and always smiled when Jongdae was around him. Jongdae didn’t know what to make of him but he enjoyed the time they spend together and Minseok would teach him something new about Hell or the tower.
The tower in the castle as it turned out was very ancient and was there even before Minseok had arrived in Hell. Most knew it as Aletheia meaning ‘truth’ and although Jongdae couldn’t yet decipher what the word meant to him it seemed the tower was a mysterious place.
What did shock Jongdae more about Hell though was the fact that there was actual food. And delicious food it was.
He couldn’t get enough of the tasty ripe fruit and small meals Kyungsoo would make and give him. He did wonder where the food came from but Jongin would tell him not to question it and just eat, but Jongdae knew he probably said it since the Fallen didn’t seem like the type to cook for himself.
Since time worked differently in Hell and there was never really a night. It seemed pointless to have a specific schedule and although sleep wasn’t necessary the Fallen were able to sleep whenever they wanted to just so that they could rest their bodies.
True to Minseok’s words, no one bothered Jongdae. The red collar being quite noticeable to all and having Jongin by his side all the time helped a lot.
For a while, nothing changed. Everything remained the same while Jongdae became used to Hell and learned to love the little things about it even if at times he felt alone.
Until the day they arrived.
As a tradition, the council of Heaven were to meet with Hell’s council to make sure that all things were kept balanced in their lands. Not having overpowered one another or that one side was too controlling.
Surprisingly Minseok had told him that the angels would be staying over for a week and in that week, there was no need for Jongdae to go to the tower and sing. He was a bit upset about it but respected his decision.
The first day Jongdae didn’t see the angels arrive but rather stayed in his own room until Jongin came barging in and pulled him from the wrist so that they could go exploring again.
“Come on, we’re going to go find pink strawberries. I heard they’re the juiciest fruit right now and are ready to pick out.”
Jongdae stumbled in his steps while following behind Jongin, “And where exactly are we going to find them?”
“On the water caves, of course.” Jongin rolled his eyes as if it were the most obvious answer.
“Right, because when has Hell ever given us great stuff without putting them on dangerous places.” Jongdae mumbled while sprinting and flapping his wings, flying past castle.
They were about to fly higher when another winged person flew towards them from the opposite direction. Jongdae’s eyes widened.
It was one of the angels from the council.
He was ethereal. Smooth skin, black hair styled back, white clothes, and from the looks of it he had long legs too probably longer than Jongin and his face was pure perfection with sharp eyebrows.
But his wings, unlike theirs, were pure white. A glowing halo was present on his wrist as well.
“Sehun? What are you doing here shouldn’t you be with the council?”
Jongin spoke for them, a frown visible in his face. It was rare to see such expression on Jongin’s face nowadays.
“Just flying by, it seems Hell hasn’t changed much from when I was last here. Except for the new Fallen behind you Jongin.”
Jongdae stared at the angel in front of him. The angel gave him a weird sensation but he decided to ignore it.
“My name is Jongdae. I recently arrived a few years ago you could say.”
Sehun nodded, “It seems you guys are heading somewhere. Would you mind if I tagged along, council meetings can be quite boring at times.”
“Very well,” Jongin sighed “I’ll let you come along just because I know how much of a pain you can be whenever you want something.”
“Hey, I’m not the one constantly wanting to go out and get myself in trouble. Besides you’re the one who always has the bright ideas to go to places we shouldn’t every time I’m here.”
Jongdae giggled. They seemed like two little kids arguing with one another.
He blushed once he noticed Sehun looking at him with a sort of interest in his eyes.
“Okay we have to go now and get those strawberries before they’re gone. And we can also get Kyungsoo to bake us something if we get a lot.” Jongin exclaimed flapping his wings and taking off once more.
Jongdae smiled and flied after him this time with Sehun matching his speed.
“So, when did you arrive to Hell?”
“A few years ago. Well it feels like a few but time is weird here and I guess it’s probably a bit longer than I keep track of.”
Jongdae found it surprisingly easy to hold a conversation with Sehun. There was a little bit of awkwardness since they had just met but other than that Sehun was fun to talk to and pretty soon Jongin had also joined in on their conversation. Re-telling stories of when Sehun and him would go together to random places in Hell to find tasty treats.
“Fallen and Angel we have arrived at our destination.”
All three of them landed on the ground. Jongdae noted that the land felt soggy in his feet, as though water was thrown all around it. In front of them was a cave’s entrance and dark leaves attached all around it. There was a hollow sound from the cold wind which was another misconception most humans had of Hell; it wasn’t hot in fact far from it there were certain areas in which it was either cold or warm and Jongdae disliked the cold places the most.
He shivered when they started walking further inside the cave. Letting his wings wrap around himself to protect him from the cold wind. Droplets of water fell from the cave and there wasn’t much light to begin with.
“Are you sure this is the right place?” asked Sehun as he took in the cave’s appearance.
Jongin grunted, “Where else do you think pink strawberries grow? In the skies? They grow here because it’s cool and the water cave gives them enough water to grow big. The best part is that they actually grow under water so we still have to go deeper into the cave.”
“Wait – underwater?! I didn’t know we could swim in Hell.” Jongdae gave Jongin a pointed look almost as though questioning why he hadn’t told him this before.
“Of course, we can hyung!” Jongin kept walking, “You just never asked. It’s a pain because we have to get our wings wet but it’ll be worth it.”
Jongdae gave a nervous chuckle.
“Okay, if you say so.”
And Jongin was right. The further they walked in they were surrounded by a soft blue light coming from the water that was inside the cave. An opening formed at the top of the cave that allowed the soft orange light from Hell to enter and it was beautiful. The water was clear and Jongdae could in fact see the pink strawberries at the bottom.
“I guess it’s time for us to go down there then.” Sehun sighed and took his white robes off.
Jongdae turned his head away and willed his light blush to disappear before he could further embarrass himself in front of the angel.
Both Jongin and Sehun had simply left on their pants.
“Come on Jongdae hyung we have to go get them while they’re still fresh.” Jongin whined.
“Well you see this thing is um… I don’t know how to swim?” Jongdae finally said looking at anywhere but at Sehun and Jongin not wanting to be teased by them.
You’d think that after 26 years of having been human he would have learned how to swim but Jongdae did always prefer the nice solid ground over being in territory that did not belong to the humans.
Jongdae could practically feel the way Jongin was smirking at him and he knew this was a bad idea already.
“Well I guess there is another lesson I can teach you then hyung~”
Jongdae looked up at Jongin and glared at him, “You wouldn’t.”
Jongin simply put his hands up and smiled.
Before Jongdae could say something, he felt a warm hand encircle his wrist and then he was being engulfed in water. He had closed his eyes as soon as he felt the impact of the water.
Come on open your eyes hyung.
Was that Sehun’s voice in his head? How was that even possible?
Let’s just say it’s an angel thing. We can form a link with whoever we want and get to hear each other’s thoughts. Of course, I won’t intrude on other things but it’s just to be able to communicate with you while we’re underwater. You can open your eyes hyung it’s beautiful and don’t worry about breathing I already formed a bubble around our mouths and noses so we should be fine.
Jongdae took a deep breath and let his eyes open slowly. It was breathtaking the water was so clear and the strawberries at the bottom were glowing softly as well. He was being pulled towards them by Sehun who still had his hand wrapped around his wrist.
As soon as they got closer to the pink strawberries they began tugging them and putting them away in a transparent bag Jongin had brought along. Once the bag was fully packed Jongin pointed up towards the surface.
Let’s go up now hyung.
Jongdae nodded his head. He thought Sehun was going to pull him up like he had been doing before but to his surprise Sehun came closer to him and wrapped an arm around his waist this time. Jongdae felt the arm tighten just a bit more than necessary and then they were swimming up.
Once they exited the water Jongin was happily laughing.
“I’d say this is more than enough for us to eat along the way.”
Jongdae nodded his head. He wanted to speak but the warm arm around his waist just meant he was going to probably say something unintelligent.
Why did Sehun have to be so handsome?
He was finally able to breath in relief once the arm left his waist although he did miss the warmness of it.
“Let’s head back and tell Kyungsoo if he can make anything with them.”
Jongin was already putting his robes back on and Sehun as well.
Jongdae pouted, “Why’d you guys have to throw me in the water with my robes on.”
Sehun chuckled.
“Sorry about that hyung. I’m sure your clothes will dry up once we near the castle. If it’s really bothering you I can lend you my clothes to borrow although I’m not sure how well the size will fit.”
Jongdae’s cheeks reddened, “No thanks! I’m perfectly fine with my wet clothes and just because you and Jongin are both giants doesn’t mean I’m by any means short. I’ll have you know I’m quite average for my height.
“Oh man you’re so cute hyung.” Jongin ruffled Jongdae’s wet hair.
“Yah! Respect your elders.” Jongdae didn’t miss the way Sehun had nodded in agreement over Jongin’s words but decided not to think too much of it. They exited the cave and spread their wings letting the cool air dry up their feathers. Once they deemed it okay all three of them took off in the direction of the castle. Just as they were heading inside Jongin left while yelling to them that he was going to go and find Kyungsoo.
Jongdae and Sehun were left alone and for a second Jongdae wasn’t sure what to do.
“Well I have to go now as well and meet up with the council they’re all probably wondering where I went. It was nice getting to spend time with you hyung. I haven’t seen Jongin that excited in a while.”
Jongdae blushed.
“Ah same to you. I haven’t seen the other angels yet but I’m sure they’re all great like you.”
Sehun smiled softly at him, “Don’t expect too much, us angels can be quite boring. Well then I’ll leave you alone now ah and for the record, I think you’re pretty handsome too.”
Jongdae gaped at him while Sehun left laughing.
Sehun was going to be the end of him.
---
After getting to know Sehun, Jongdae was happy that the angel would seek him out each day during his stay in Hell. He would accompany him on his daily flights around the castle, or they would visit Kyungsoo and eat with him and Jongin. Jongdae had also shown Sehun his room and they would talk about random things until it was time for Sehun to leave.
Jongdae learned that Sehun had been once human too. He had died when he was 24 the same age as Jongin and as it turned out had been living in Heaven for quite a while. Sehun told him that when he was human he used to have a passion for dancing and had planned to one day open up his own dance studio. But as it turned out one day he had been walking home late at night and felt something sharp in his back and then he woke up and found himself in front of an angel.
Jongdae had apologized for what he didn’t know but Sehun had simply shook his head, “Don’t worry about it. In the end, I lived a pretty good life and so many years have passed I’ve learned to let go of it. I’m here now and I get to talk to you so I say it turned out quite well.”
Jongdae had blushed and lightly punched Sehun’s arm.
The days he spent with Sehun were amazing. He was charmed by the young angel, they would talk for hours and he wouldn’t get tired of him. There were moments when Sehun would wrap his arm around his shoulders or if they were in his room he would lay his head on Jongdae’s lap while Jongdae played with his wings.
Without realizing Jongdae knew what happened.
He had fallen in love.
How was it possible that knowing someone for five days only and yet Jongdae couldn’t deny the feelings that had grown ever since their first encounter. He had never felt this way before not even when he was human.
So, on the fifth day even though he could hear Minseok’s words the week before telling him that he didn’t have to sing while the angels were in Hell, Jongdae couldn’t help it.
He flew to the tower with his wings spread wide and a smile on his face. He just needed to release the feelings he had inside. Just for a moment.
As soon as he landed on the tower he could feel it come alive for him almost as if it were just as happy to see him as he was.
“Just for today, I’m sorry Minseok hyung.” He whispered.
Jongdae touched the tower’s wall and sang softly. Letting the song flow through him.
Even the brightest jewel in heaven
For sure couldn’t be brighter than you
Don’t drift away from me
Baby won’t you stay
I’ll love only you forever
Hello angel, you’re like a painting
You’re all I see when I look to the skies
City street lights, even if the lights go out
And the moon disappears, it’s bright because
I have a star that fell from the skies
And it’s you
And it’s you
The tower glowed. Jongdae knew that all of Hell must have been illuminated with the light as well and he smiled softly to himself. It had been a while since he had done this but surely the other Fallen must have missed it as well.
He was shaken from his happy moment when he heard flapping from outside the tower. Once he looked outside he was stunned to see an angel he hadn’t seen before. Next to him was Minseok as well floating in the air and although he looked normal Jongdae could notice the slight angered expression.
“What is the meaning of this Minseok?” The angel landed on the tower and walked closer to him.
Jongdae took a step back. He wasn’t sure what he had done wrong but the angel did not look happy.
“Minseok hyung what’s going on?”
Minseok however, remained quiet to both of their questions. The angel who was now in front of him touched his forehead and Jongdae could feel the way his halo ankle bracelet stung.
“Your ankle. Show me your ankle.”
Jongdae slapped the hand on his forehead and stepped further away from the angel.
“I don’t have to show you anything! I don’t know what’s going on and frankly Minseok hyung is the only one I follow orders from not some angel I don’t know.”
Minseok landed on the tower as well and walked towards him, “Jongdae it’s alright. Show Junmyeon your ankle.”
Jongdae hesitated and unwillingly lifted his robe a little until the halo ankle bracelet was visible to them both.
Junmyeon eyes narrowed on halo and turned towards Minseok face visibly shocked and angry, “Minseok. Why didn’t you report this to Heaven?! You have an angel with you living in Hell when his soul clearly belongs to Heaven. He will be leaving with us immediately after the council meeting is over.”
Minseok clenched his jaw.
“Junmyeon, you cannot do that. An irresponsible angel dropped his soul and it arrived in Hell on its own. Fate has led Jongdae’s soul to Hell and both of us know there is nothing we can do to change that. The tower has chosen Jongdae, he keeps the balance and has been since he arrived. You would go against your own Goddess who build this tower if you take Jongdae with you.”
Junmyeon glared at Minseok, “And you are a fool Minseok. We both know what happens to an angel who lives in Hell for too long. You may have transformed him into half demon but his true soul will always belong to Heaven. The tower may have chosen him but it is only a matter of time.”
Junmyeon took one last look at Jongdae and flew away.
Jongdae let out a breath he didn’t even realize he was holding.
What did Junmyeon mean?
“Minseok hyung what’s going on? I only wanted to sing because it felt right and now the angel, Junmyeon, he was angry.”
Minseok looked at Jongdae in the eyes and smiled sadly at him.
“I knew I should’ve kept you from seeing the angel. From now on I forbid you from seeing Sehun, until the angels leave in two days you are to be inside your room at all times and no one is allowed in except for the ones I allow.”
Jongdae’s hands trembled and he was shocked at the way Minseok’s face had hardned.
“You can’t do that! I don’t belong to you or Hell or Heaven for that matter. I belong to myself! Just what exactly is so wrong with me being here and talking to Sehun, Minseok hyung I love – “
Minseok had already pressed his fingers to Jongdae’s forehead and once Jongdae blinked again he found himself in his room except there was no door and the window had been sealed shut.
Jongdae yelled in frustration.
“Minseok hyung! Minseok! You bastard let me out of here! Please let me out! I didn’t do anything wrong and neither did Sehun! Please just let me out… I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have gone to the tower like you told me. I shouldn’t have sung but please Minseok just let me see him one last time.”
I’m sorry Jongdae but it’ll just be more painful for you if I let you see him.
Jongdae’s eyes burned and before he realized it his cheeks were already wet.
I hope you can forgive me Jongdae.
---
On the last day that the angels were to stay in Hell Jongdae felt absolutely horrible. His head was pounding and his halo ankle bracelet was annoyingly hot. He had tried taking it off but just like the collar around his neck it had refused to come off.
He was in his bed trying to close his eyes off and let sleep take away his pain when he felt a soft hand on his head.
“Jongae hyung I’m sorry I wasn’t able to do anything. But before Minseok hyung finds out I was here. Someone wanted to give you something.” Jongin whispered putting the paper his hand along with a snow rose that were rare in Hell but beautiful.
Jongin vanished as soon as he came.
Jongdae clutched the paper to his chest and stood up weakly. He opened the letter and willed himself to not cry while he read.
Jongdae hyung,
I heard from Junmyeon hyung what happened. Honestly, part of me felt like I should have realized it sooner. Whenever we were together you would glow softly and I would find myself enthralled by your calming presence. Your touch was always soft and whenever you spoke I would wonder how such a voice could make me feel so much happiness and comfort. You are an angel as much as you are also a demon and no one can tell you otherwise. You belong to yourself not to Heaven or Hell and they cannot control what you decide for yourself. I have never met someone as witty, adorable and beautiful as you and my only regret was not being able to tell you how I felt. We are leaving today and it pains me. I wanted to stay in Hell for you, but Junmyeon hyung wouldn’t allow it and in the end, I know one way or another they would have taken me back with them. I’m sorry that our moments together were so short. I’m sorry that this happened and perhaps if we had met in a different life things could have ended up differently. But I’m sorry that while you gave me so much joy I wasn’t able to be honest with you.
Jongdae hyung, I love you. In another life let’s meet again without anyone or anything being in our way because you are my one and only star.
Love always and forever,
Sehun
Jongdae sobbed clutching the paper to his chest. He held the snow rose close to him as well.
“Minseok hyung please, just send me to the tower. Just let me sing for him one last time.”
He closed his eyes and when he opened them he was back in the tower. He smiled despite how broken he felt, “Thank you hyung.”
The snow rose was still on his hand.
“Please Aletheia, let this song get to him.”
With the blowing breeze
The cherry blossoms falling on me resembled you
How lonely this feels, it hurt more than a wound from a cut
When I engraved you in my heart
When the moonlight started to fade
You were sadly scattering as well
If everything changes and I can see you again
I’d hold you and tell you this
That the 100 days of this dream
Were more beautiful than any other day
That I loved you
Tears fell down his cheeks while the tower glowed softly. All of Hell was engulfed in the brightest light Jongdae hadn’t seen before. The light felt sad and comforting and when he heard Sehun’s voice in his head he knew the tower had listened to his only wish.
I love you too hyung.
---
A year had passed since the angels had come to Hell and Jongdae was slowly going back to being himself again. There were moments when he would spend by himself in his room but Jongin would usually pull him out and take him to go eat food Kyungsoo had cooked.
He also couldn’t hate Minseok. He still talked to him and enjoyed his company but there were times when he noticed Minseok would look at him with sadness and guilt and would soon go back into his neutral face.
Things were certainly becoming normal. Except they weren’t.
Jongdae hadn’t told anyone yet but whenever he had to sing in the tower lately he would find himself out of breath and an unbearable pain would form in his chest. He needed to catch his breath before he could get back down and act like nothing had happened. At first, he thought it was due to the fact that his heart and mind still missed Sehun but more than that now it was just pure pain.
One day he finally couldn’t take the pain anymore. He had collapsed as soon as he had finished singing and Jongin was there with him that day after whining that he had missed being able to join him.
Jongin had quickly taken him to Yixing and Yixing had called Minseok to be there as he could technically find nothing wrong with him.
“Minsoek hyung I can’t find anything that would cause the pain he’s in. I’ve tried to heal him but his breathing doesn’t sound any better and he continues to look pale.”
“I knew this was bound to happen,” Minseok squeezed Jongdae’s hand, “I just didn’t think it would happen this fast.”
“What do you mean?”
“Yixing would you mind leaving me alone with Jongdae for a while. There’s something I have to tell him and try to reassure Jongin that everything is alright.”
Yixing nodded and turned to leave the room.
Minseok pressed his palm on Jongdae’s forehead, “Come on wake up little one.”
Jongdae’s eyelids shook and he slowly regained consciousness.
Minseok smiled down at him.
“I’m sorry I haven’t been very honest with you. For some time, I thought the rumors of the tower were a myth and that you being here meant it was fate. But now, I’ve come to realize that that same path that brought you to us is going to take you away. Aletheia is both a blessing and a curse in Hell. Not many of us knew what it was used for although we did know it had magical abilities. But when you sang for the very first time, I just knew. Your voice it is God’s gift. When you go to the tower and sing, the tower consumes all of Hell in a soft light. It makes us feel emotions many of have abandoned. I myself have been in Hell for so long I have forgotten what it meant to be human.”
Minseok stroke Jongdae’s hair gently.
“But the tower is killing you and so is Hell. As your soul was originally meant to become an angel, Hell is slowly consuming you and there is only so much the demon appearance I bestowed upon you can do. Aletheia is also taking your life force. Junmyeon was right, you don’t belong in Hell. But Aletheia chose you and that is not a fate you deserve. I’m so sorry Jongdae that I couldn’t do more to protect you, that I made you stay here against your will and that all I made you suffer so much.”
Jongdae felt a warm tear on his own cheek and his eyes widened when he saw that it was Minseok’s own tears.
“I would willingly abandon all my human emotions if it meant keeping you alive.”
Jongdae smiled warmly at Minseok, “Hyung you’re too kind you know, nothing like how I expected the mightiest ruler of Hell to be like. I don’t hate you or resent you for making me stay here. You’re important to me, you and the other Fallen have brought me much happiness. Even if it was only for a while I’m truly glad I was able to be here with you all.”
Minseok nodded, wiping away his own tears.
“I’ll let you rest now. Jongin will probably enter any minute now and he’ll probably figure it out too that young one is quite bright.”
Jongdae laughed at him but agreed.
Once Minseok had left Jongin came inside soon after with Kyungsoo and Yixing behind him.
“Hyung! Are you alright?”
Jongdae smiled at him, “I’m fine Jongin don’t worry. Just a bit tired. I’ll be up in no time and then we can go search for those small demon cats you said you saw last time.”
Jongin felt relieved but still worried about him. Jongdae didn’t look as fine as he said he did but for now he would trust him.
“Feel better Jongdae. I made a new recipe so you should come over to my place whenever you want. I still have some left over pink strawberries that Jongin brought last time.” Kyungsoo said grasping Jongin’s hand to comfort him.
Jongdae nodded his head. He was so thankful for the people he met. Hell wasn’t the place he was meant to go to but it was the place he was meant to be.
The following days Jongdae only kept feeling more and more exhausted. Soon he found it difficult to get out of bed and yet he kept reassuring Jongin that everything was alright.
He could tell however, that Jongin along with Kyungsoo and Yixing had learned the truth from Minseok but had yet to ask him about it.
During the hard days, he couldn’t help but think about Sehun and wonder if he still felt the same way even after all the time had passed. He still missed him so much.
Jongdae was laying in his bed and looking at the snow rose he had next to him on a vase when Minseok suddenly appeared before him. Minseok looked like he was trying not to cry and simply helped him sit up.
“Let’s go to the tower, one last time.”
Jongdae nodded. His eyelids felt so heavy.
When he opened his eyes fully they were standing on the tower. Minseok supporting him up, Jongdae was happy to see that Jongin, Kyungsoo and Yixing were there as well.
“Thank you for everything. I wish there were words to express how I feel but just one last time, I hope you can feel it in my song.”
Jongdae touched the tower whose presence was slowly vanishing away as well and smiled at them all.
I did it all with a smile on my face
The traces have disappeared in my memories
Maybe they’ll come back to me
But I’ll just smile and send them back
I did it all with a smile on my face
No one has to be hurt
I don’t grab onto you as you go away
I want to send you off with a smile
With a smile on my face
If you want, I’ll just stay, I’ll just stay
Here like this, I’ll just stay, I’ll just stay
The tower glowed a soft white, Jongdae could feel the last bit of energy leaving him. He remembered in that moment Sehun telling him angels could form telepathic connections with others. And because he was too tired to speak because he felt pain from having to see his friends no – his brothers crying he willed himself to try for them.
In another life, Minseok, Jongin, Kyungsoo and Yixing let’s meet again.
Jongdae felt his world becoming pitch black.
And Sehun too.
---
The café was incredibly busy during the afternoon and Baekhyun could really use a break from all the customers. Who knew opening a café would make his life this busy and they really needed to hire more staff.
The college students were perhaps the most sleep deprived people Baekhyun saw every day. He was glad he didn’t have to deal with exams or last-minute papers anymore.
Chanyeol was in the register besides him and was equal amounts of stressed as he was with all the orders they had.
The other worker was busy serving the tables and he was glad Chanyeol and him had agreed in hiring him. He was quite a cute and hardworking person and got along with all the customers. The charming personality definitely did wonders to the café. They also had someone in the back to bake pastries for them which helped boost the café’s popularity.
The day passed just like any other busy Saturday and soon they found the last hour to be a calming one. Not many people came to drink a cup of coffee in the night.
Five men entered the café and took a seat near the window area. Chanyeol decided it was a good idea to get the new worker to take care of the cash register the last hour to get accustomed to how it worked.
One of the man from the table stood up to ask for their orders and in that moment neither of them could look away from one another.
The worker flustered quickly composed himself, “What do you wish to order?”
“Ah sorry. I was just thinking about it for a second. Um just three cups of black coffee, one vanilla latte, and one cup of hot chocolate. As for pastries, we’ll have the fire lily cake, pink strawberry tart and three snow rose cupcakes.”
“Okay, and your name? Just so that I can call it out for you once their done.”
The customer looked at the cute blush in the worker’s face and smiled.
“Haha, don’t worry about it. I’m Sehun.”
“Sehun. Got it, your order should be done in a few minutes.”
He took Sehun’s card and processed the transaction before returning it to him. Blushing once more when he felt their hands brush against one another.
“Thank you,” Sehun looked at the worker’s nametag and laughed softly at him, “Jongdae.”
Jongdae smiled back at him while Sehun headed back to his table.
Baekhyun whistled behind him making Jongdae jump a bit when he realized Baekhyun was actually supervising him.
“Tall and handsome. He totally seemed interested in you.”
Jongdae fumbled with the drinks he was preparing for Sehun and his friends.
“Don’t be silly. He was probably just being nice. Besides I’m sure he probably has someone he’s dating right now.”
Chanyeol who had been paying attention to their conversation chuckled.
“Yeah because him looking at you so intensely with his eyes and deliberately looking at your name tag to say your name tells us he has someone he’s dating. I’ve seen a lot of flirting in this café some of it extremely bad, let’s just say you don’t want to see Baekhyun flirt, but that guy totally had it in his face that he was interested.”
Baekhyun lightly punched Chanyeol besides him, “Hey there’s nothing wrong with my flirting.”
Jongdae laughed at them both. The two of them definitely knew how to lighten the mood. Chanyeol went to the back to help the other worker with the pastries while Baekhyun tended to other cleaning duties he wanted to complete before they closed.
Once the order for Sehun was completed Jongdae called his name and waited for him.
“Wow these look amazing.”
“Yeah our baker is pretty skilled. I’ll let him know you find it good I’m sure he’ll be happy to hear about it.” Jongdae helped him pile the pastries and drinks into a large platter.
Once he finished helping him, he expected Sehun to leave but was surprised when he stayed.
“So… are you working here tomorrow? Or are you free by any chance?”
Now even if he lied to himself Jongdae could practically feel how red his face had gotten.
“No – I well, um I work in the morning but I’m free after 6.” He responded nervously.
Sehun sighed in relief, “Oh god I thought I was going to make a fool out of myself but well then would you like to eat dinner with me. I mean that is if you want to.”
Jongdae nodded his head.
“I think that’d be nice.”
“Great! I’ll be here to pick you up after your shift ends. I have to go now my friends are probably being nosy and want to know what’s taking me so long.”
Jongdae chuckled at him and watched Sehun return to his table.
When the time came to finally close the café Jongdae noticed Sehun’s friends leave while he walked towards him.
“I’ll be going now but if it’s not too forward of me. Would you mind exchanging phone numbers?”
Luckily for Jongdae, Baekhyun and Chanyeol were busy cleaning up the back so he didn’t have to deal with their teasing.
“That’s fine with me.” He replied already taking out his own phone and handing it over to Sehun to type in his number while he did the same to Sehun’s phone. Once they were both done Jongdae was nervously holding his hands together. He wasn’t sure what to say but being with Sehun left him with a pleasant feeling.
“It was nice meeting you Jongdae, I’ll see you tomorrow. Have a good night.”
Sehun gave him a warm smile which Jongdae gladly returned. He waved at him until he saw Sehun exit the café. Once he looked at his phone in which Sehun had saved his contact information he couldn’t help but laugh at Sehun’s cute angel emoji next to his name.
Tomorrow was going to be a good day.