Chapter Text
The warmer nights of may slipped through the uneven frame of their dorm window and the chilling soft beginning summer breeze painted his skin wet with a sheer layer of sweat, rough hands reaching up to pull his white short sleeve shirt back and forth to create a breeze on his red cheeked face, the sun rays that peeked through the space his curtain didn’t fully cover slowly began climbing up the wall like a shy bug hiding in plain sight, the room was covered in such thick atmosphere of heat and moisture just sighing out loud felt inconsiderate.
Jongseong slumped on the desk, the damp skin of his bare arms blaringly cold against the wooden surface, his cheek slowly pressing against his forearm. “Maybe Hee’s plan was to hotbox us to death this whole time.” His voice came out muffled, face smashed against his own skin, all too sweaty to sit up straight, he knew they heard him, nonetheless, both his classmates sat just as melted and defeated as him.
“He said he was getting gas before we leave- it’s a five hour drive, too, don’t be a brat.” His classmate Jake huffed from where he sat at his own bed, laptop on his lap loudly ventilating as if it were about to take off into their dorm ceiling, and Jongseong scowled at him, the witch paying absolutely no mind to his mannerisms. “It’s been like, like an hour and a half!” The blond threw his entire body back over the chair he sat on, Sunghoon, who sat by him in his own bunk bed scoffing in disbelief. “You didn’t even want to go in the first place, be quiet.”
Sunghoon’s entire body shook under the numerous blankets he’d placed on himself, two, three, maybe four sweaters draped over his shoulders as he vehemently struggled to type away on his computer. As a vampire, the youngest was cursed with thermal confusion, the warmer it got the colder he felt- and vice versa, Sunghoon really had struggled adapting to the human world more than the two of them combined.
Jongseong, Jaeyun and Sunghoon were nowhere near average college students, the trio came from a small town in the outskirts of Gyeonggi-do, where all kinds of otherworldly beings tried their best to live a quiet and safe life in a human-ridden world.
Jaeyun came from a long line of herbal witches that sought refuge from the judgmental eye of the elders in eighteenth century Seoul, though as one of the modern generations, the boy knew absolutely nothing of such a world, had he ever experienced the bitter taste of magic discrimination, it probably came from one of his roommates themselves.
Sunghoon’s own great grandparents were part of the first few non human habitants in the town, a family of vampires that found shelter after a nasty encounter with stubborn and prejudiced humans, he was by far the least adaptable of the bunch- pearly white skin, long claw-like nails and large fangs he refused to shave down, he was flashy and wherever he went all eyes were on him, especially during summer when he’d go around their university campus with multiple layers of clothing and thick scarfs.
Heeseung, like him, was also a vampire, though his family bloodline was quite tainted by numerous odd creatures outside of the predator spectrum, they were more open and accepting of other beings and by result, the boy's own genetic traits weren't as unmanageable as Sunghoon's, he really did try his best to fit in with the crowds; periodically shaving down his fangs and making an effort to withstand the weather, their first few months in the new city he’d nagged the younger quite a bit about his lack of disposal to blend in, though nonetheless, they both grew tired of the constant arguing.
Jay is an entirely different story. He’s human, that’s for sure, even if sometimes he gets so caught up in his friend’s own struggles he feels unable to fit in with his own kind. He was born to a human family and grew up surrounded by humans until his mother married a werewolf when he was thirteen, both of them moving in with her new husband and his ten year old son Riki who, certainly, was also a werewolf.
All three of them grew up together, when both Jake and Sunghoon graduated high school their parents didn’t have any plans of letting them get any higher education, it just wasn’t what they did- why would they waste their time in mundane human activities like that when they could live happily, and most importantly, safely, in their hometown, surrounded by people like them?
Jay was independent and self sufficient and smart and had big plans from the beginning, Heeseung and him both planned to go to a university in the big city, the elder leaving first and all three of them following close behind him.
Sunghoon’s parents were protective of him, justifiably so, stacking up his suitcase with various weapons when he left home, unlike Jake’s own conservative mothers who’d given him but a houseplant, claiming it was a good luck omen- but he knew better, all of them did.
It was their first summer going back home since leaving for college and after begging for a good few weeks they managed to convince Jongseong to come along with them. The eldest of the three wasn’t fond of the idea for various reasons, not only because his parents had never been too happy about him leaving and didn’t fully acclimatize to the idea even months after he’d left, not even because the road trip was well over five hours long; he’d burned a few bridges in his last few days in their hometown, one of those being a very nasty public break up with Yang Jungwon.
Riki and him spoke to each other weekly, the younger depended on him heavily to get through high school being so shy and reserved, and he’d often let out the occasional comment about Jungwon- they were a friend group, after all, he hadn’t expected them to completely vanish the younger from their minds after their messy break up, his little brother had good intentions in bringing him up, all excited and sweet as he mentioned Jungwon would attend summer school and would most likely not even notice Jongseong was there. It stung, of course, especially when the elder had spent more than a few of his nights crying over him, but at least he knew they wouldn’t make things awkward for the rest.
His relationship with Jungwon was tricky, they hadn’t ended on good terms in the slightest and he wasn’t shy of bad-mouthing him to his friends, truth is Jay had convinced himself mid-duel that it was the younger’s fault and he didn’t deserve to be cried over, it helped him sleep soundly and it cleared his stomach of the ugly bitterness that burned his insides when his little brother mentioned perhaps he was seeing someone else.
They dated for a little less than a year, Jungwon being one of the very few occult magic witches in town and in result played the outcast at school; people didn’t like him, they thought he was scary and fear turned to disgust, the teasing wasn’t unbearable and the younger tried his best to act like it didn’t affect him, but Jay knew it did.
It was ironic to him, how a human like himself was more accepted than a sweet boy who’s only mistake was being born into a family of witches and learning their lifestyle, he never made a move to defend him, anyway, Jungwon had asked to keep their relationship a secret to preserve Jongseong from having to endure the same treatment, and he always held a grudge for it, all bitter and resenting about his boyfriend not considering him strong enough to withstand such things for him- he accepted, after all, because in the end he'd be willing to do anything and everything for Jungwon.
It was may the second and they’d just gotten laid off for summer break abnormally early to prepare for the harsh weather hitting the city, Heeseung had landed a deal with one of his upperclassmen to borrow his car and drive them all back to Gyeonggi-do to spend the summer with their families as they’d planned.
The elder showed up after the sky had gone dark and the street lights had begun turning on in a domino effect over the sidewalk, all four of them struggling to load their many essential belongings into a small five passenger car with a broken trunk handle, both Jake and Jongseong swimming and Heeseung's handbags that sat stacked on the floors of the back seats, all of them smiling from ear to ear, finally feeling their chest swell at the thought of going home.
They had no plans of ever switching drivers, it was a vampire thing- being able to stay awake for long periods of time; all of which Heeseung and Jay spent talking their heads off about some show they watched the night before, Sunghoon picking the music off Heeseung's phone, riding shotgun while Jake sat passed out on the back seat.
"I just don't understand why they have to be teenagers all the time. It's weird- what kind of 15 year old knows how to drive a motorcycle?" Jay chit chatted while Red velvet's Power up blasted from the car radio, Sunghoon's head swinging left and right to the beat, as Heeseung nervously fidgeted on his seat, hands opening and closing over the steering wheel. "Yeah, I know- Georgia is a great mom, she's really willing to do anything for her kids, you can tell from the beginning of the show and, um, at the end- hey, d 'you know what you're gonna do if you bump into Wonnie?"
Everyone's head whipped towards Heeseung, eyes wide and bewildered, Jay's own mouth hanging open. "Why would you ask me that?" His brows were furrowed, but the older one didn't cower under his look even for a second. "Because I don't want you to cause another scene." Sunghoon gasped, lowering the window and looking out as if he were giving them privacy.
"I'm not going to, we don't even talk anymore." He crossed his arms over his chest, looking out the window with his cheeks puffed out, memories of his quarrel with the younger flashing in his mind and making heat run up the nape of his neck. "You mean you don't talk outside those dramatic playlist titles." Heeseung's voice burnt into the back of his head as Jake let out a chuckle, unable to keep pretending to be sleeping anymore. "You guys still do that? God, who even uses Spotify anymore?"
Jongseong looked back at him, brows furrowed and a pout on his lips. "I do! And what about it? You wish someone would make you a playlist!" All three of them broke out in giggles, the blonde leaning back on his seat with his hands into fists. "It doesn't matter, I'm not talking to him, if he shows up I'll just pretend he doesn't exist."
Heeseung sighed, shoulders growing impossibly small in his seat and his eyes darting over the empty street road, tall yellow-tinted lights opening up the view of a smaller city well into the nighttime. “I just don’t want things to get complicated, you’ve had a rough couple of months and this is supposed to be a vacation…” He trailed off, scowling at Sunghoon who’d skipped one of his favorite songs while he was speaking.
“If you get stuck in an awkward situation, just tell us, and we’ll be there for you, alright?” Jake reached out to place a calming hand on his knee, Jongseong smiling back at him hesitantly and with a ghost of disgust on his expression; he hated feeling like he had to rely on others- even worse, like others knew he needed someone to rely on, but Jake could always see right through him, always so kind and pure and loving it made him wonder how he ended up with such devilish people as his only friends.
“Don’t get too comfortable anyway, if you say something stupid and make him cry you’re on your own.” Sunghoon’s voice was muffled by the sound of the traffic of his open window, and Jay growled at him, Heeseung nodding along to his words, Jaeyun giggling and settling back into his original sleeping position.
He knew. How much their break up had driven a wedge within their friend group; how things had never quite fit the same ever since, but he couldn't bring himself to feel entirely too guilty about it- not when Jungwon had allowed all of them to take his side, not when he knew he was the sole reason some of them still felt wary towards the younger.
Jake and Sunghoon stuck to him like glue through all of it, through their messy relationship and even through the aftermath of their entire high school witnessing their break up, he could still vividly remember Sunghoon shoving Geonu from a class above them into a wall for calling him a coward. The younger got into a numerous amount of fights for him, all ending on Jake pulling him back by his shirt collar and all three of them getting into trouble; it wasn’t easy adapting to a world where everyone had an opinion about him and his very personal problems, but he could take it, all of it; high school felt small and meaningless in comparison to the rest of his life, all thanks to the clumsy sideline support he got.
Three in the morning stars shone on them through the car windows, barely an hour and a half into their trip and the car was dead silent with the exception of Fromis_9’s FUN! blasting on the radio, one of Sunghoon’s favorites that they all liked to pretend to hate but couldn’t hold back from singing along even in the funeral-like atmosphere that gleaned over them after bringing up the unnamable; within a few seconds they were back to head bobbing and yelling at each other over some controversial tv show opinion Heeseung only shared to rile them up. Jongseong could only think he’d be okay with anything as long as he had them.
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“Would you rather everything you eat for the rest of your life taste like Mint-Choco or only eat Mint-Choco for the rest of your life but have it taste like normal food?” Sunghoon fiddled with the straw of his transparent thermos, some unknown red substance Heeseung had added swimming amongst chunks of whipped cream.
“Why would I ever choose the first one? I’m gagging.” Jake replied from the back seat, Looking at Sunghoon like he was genuinely about to cry at the thought and Heeseung started swatting at the space between them, just to make sure they didn’t hit each other. “But you’re eating Mint-Choco all the time, you’re gonna look like a weirdo and you’re probably gonna, like, die from only eating that.” The eldest made a noise of realization, briefly looking back at Jake before turning back to the road. “He’s got a point.”
The trio continued bickering while Jongseong struggled to read the signs beside the street they drove on, squinting to catch a glimpse of the buildings nearby as he’d woken up only minutes prior and couldn’t comprehend how far they’d come.
“Hyung, are we in Seoul yet?” Their heads comically turned towards him in absolute shock, the oldest losing momentum for a moment and struggling to get back on track even with no cars roaming the road; it was seven in the morning and they’d barely made it to the bus stops in the outskirts of Seoul.
“You slept through all of it, we’re almost at the bus stop to meet with Riki.” Heeseung’s voice was raspy and low, Jay could only imagine how tiring it’d been for him to deal with dumb and dumber all by himself for the last four hours.
The morning sun shone through the car windows obnoxiously and made his skin feel hot, straightening up and feeling pain shoot through his back and neck due to the position he’d been sleeping in; sweat quickly forming on the skin of his arms under the harsh warmth of May heat, it was so early the fog in the city hadn’t dissipated yet it was still so hot he couldn’t bear to sit in the car for a second longer.
Heeseung maneuvered through the narrow streets of Seoul, quickly reaching a nearly empty travel bus stop with a broken instant coffee machine and a convenience store next door, his three friends heaving out a sigh at the prospect of finally leaving the car and stretching their legs for the first time in well over an hour, at least since they’d gotten off to get the sugary drinks the two youngest had been fighting over for the last few minutes.
Jongseong stretched his legs over the cold pavement as soon as he opened the car door, groans echoing as soon as all car doors opened and all he could make out was Sunghoon announcing he and Jake were going to the convenience store and Heeseung blabbering with Riki over the phone about where they were parked and what they were wearing- it made him giggle, his little brother’s sleepy voice through the phone speaker and how deep it’d gotten within the last few months.
He stood with his back against the car when Heeseung screeched and ran to engulf a whiny teenager into a hug, huge smile crawling into his lips as he watched the eldest smash their cheeks together, the blonde boy grumping and trying to push him off with a displeased expression on his face. Regardless of how unhappy he looked with the affection, Jay didn’t hold back from joining the hug, both of them keeping the youngest sandwiched in between their bodies and struggling to escape their growing body heat, cheeks flushed and a loose short sleeve hanging from his shoulders. “Let go! There’s people looking at us!” He sputtered, both of them giggling and pulling away with huge smiles on their faces. “Why did you grow so much all of a sudden? You’re huge.” Heeseung’s eyes looked as if they were about to jump out of their sockets as he looked up at the youngest, jaw slacked and brows raised.
Riki was about to speak, Jongseong standing next to him with his hand buried in his hair, pushing it around and off his forehead, when three voices made all three of them turn around to where their car sat parked, his smile sliding off his face almost immediately.
Sunghoon ran in circles with Jungwon piggy-backed on top of him, Jake chasing after both with a can of diet coke in his right hand as all three of them giggled incessantly, Jay struggling not to scowl as a sharp tinge of jealousy spread through his chest- it was his first time seeing Jungwon in over a year, and he had he arms locked around Sunghoon’s neck, smiling without a care in the world.
Jungwon was nearly the same as last time he’d seen him, his hair was longer and it curled prettily at the nape of his neck, outgrowing his perm to the point it sat awkwardly puffed out upwards at the top of his head, still pitch black and as luscious as always. A dimple peeked from his cheek, more evident now that he smiled so wide and adorable, cat-like eyes screwed shut with the toothy grin he wore, and Jongseong felt like the air was kicked out of him when he opened them, all bright and glittery, huge sparkles in both as he looked down at Jake and Sunghoon who shared a straw to drink from the same can.
Jungwon was so beautiful sometimes he couldn’t help himself from telling him, back when they were together he’d never go a day without bringing up just how pretty he was, more often than not itching to embrace him too, it was a common theme in their relationship; holding Jungwon tight because he was afraid he’d get away otherwise. The younger was always bashful, pink dusting his cheeks and the same shy smile he hid behind his hands, he could almost remember vividly the way his body reacted to the smallest of compliments. Almost.
A smile spread across the younger’s lips, cheeks heating up as he hid his face inside the book he'd been reading, trying to stifle a laugh. "Why are you reading a herbology book? Do you even know what to do with that?" His voice was high pitched, black strands sitting on his forehead and moving ever so slightly at the up and down of his brows.
Jongseong blushed, hands gripping a thick book tightly as he struggled to bring out the words to explain himself. "It-it was sitting there and I thought it looked cool! What do you care if I'm reading about herbology? I might be a hidden prodigy or something." He stammered, the lower half of the younger's face hidden in a book, though it wasn't hard to tell he was smiling. "What are yarrows for?"
He thought for a second, lips pursed, staring right back at the younger. "I'm just not that far into the book!" The witch let out a breathy laugh, letting the book down on the table and a few seconds after reaching up to hide behind his hands.
"Why do you keep covering your face like that?" And he stopped laughing, looking at him bewildered as if he'd been so impossibly discreet there was no way the elder would notice. "What do you mean?" Slowly, he brought his hands down, a puzzled expression on his face, and Jongseong couldn't help breaking into a smile. “You keep going like this!” He said, bringing his hands up all over the lower half of his face, and Jungwon looked at him with a playful smile on his lips, the elder only now noticing his left cheek was swollen.
“I got stung with a thorn yesterday, it hurts a little sometimes.” Jungwon propped his face on both his hands, now closer to Jongseong who giggled at the thought. “I wouldn’t have noticed if you didn’t do that, you’re probably making it worse.” he absentmindedly reached out to push some of Jungwon’s fringe off his forehead, the younger looking up at him with bright, round eyes.
“If you were actually reading the book you’d know that’s not true.” He puffed his cheeks out, closing his eyes and letting the elder play with the chunks of hair on his face.
"You're so pretty…" He said, leaning in almost to the point where their noses touched, and Jungwon’s eyes shot open as soon as he felt the older’s breath fanning his lips.
"What are you doing? We came here to read, I'm not letting you do this again." Jay felt his cheek warm up against his hand before he pulled away, heaving out a sigh and propping back on his chair. "It's boring, might as well just stare at you reading instead."
The younger shoved his face back into the thick leather-covered book he’d been reading, shaking his head when the elder reached his hand out to ask for him to hold it, and they sat in silence like that for a long time, Jungwon softly mouthing the words he read under his breath and Jongseong tracing the soft curves of his features with his eyes, in silence, his own stack of paper forgotten as he sat there wondering if maybe he could kiss his cheek better when he was done reading.
He hated the way his chest clenched when their eyes met, even for a second all he could think about was how bad he wanted to hold him, suddenly it wasn’t hot anymore, his back was okay, the print of his seat belt on his neck was numb and the stiffness in his thighs was nonexistent, all he really needed was Jungwon, a kiss from him, a hug- maybe even just a handshake, he needed him so much and he had no idea.
“He’s leaving for summer camp tomorrow, relax.” Riki’s hoarse morning voice broke him out of the trance, his gaze falling on the floor under his thick sneakers and Heeseung running to get a hug from the second youngest as well, Jongseong feeling disgust creep up his throat at his little brother reaching up to pat his back, he felt stupid every time something like this happened. “It’s fine.” He bit back, scowling and shoving himself back in the car without anything else, tears almost burning at the corners of his eyes when the eldest began discussing the sitting arrangements and pointed at him sitting in the back seat; he hated it, he hated all of it so much and he couldn’t do anything about it.
Sunghoon took the role of driver as per Heeseung’s request, Jake now riding shotgun and all four of Heeseung, Jungwon, Riki and Jongseong sat in the backseat, the second youngest huddled up in Heeseung’s lap as he slept with his head squashed on the window, Riki in the middle seat having some elaborate discussion with Jake about some video game they both seemed far too immersed in; and Jongseong sitting in his own misery, looking out the window and waiting for the awkward tension to disappear on its own.
The drive from Seoul to their hometown was little under thirty minutes, Jake and Sunghoon bickering over the radio for a good portion of it- Jay used the time to steal an unhealthy amount of glances at Jungwon, his little brother elbowing him on the ribs to warn him of how obvious he was being halfway through the drive, and all of a sudden they were home; fickle pine trees decorating the side of the road and multiple stop signs for foreigners all the way into the outskirts, flowers of colors nonexistent in the outside world all innocently placed with the utmost caution by the arboretum entrance just outside the city, meant to hide their hometown from any curious human eyes that happened to stumble across the abandoned road despite the previous signs, and the sun that once shone through the windows was hidden behind large chunks of leaves from tall trees decorating their way.
Sunghoon put his hand on Jake’s thigh, peeking at the backseats to look at the quartet in the back. “I want ice cream, do you guys want ice cream? We’re getting ice cream.” His voice was giddy and he could barely keep the smile off his lips as he spoke, Riki and Jungwon eagerly agreeing and a sleeping Heeseung squirmed and whined, his natural response to Sunghoon’s voice when sleeping was simply annoyance.
Shortly after getting to the civilized part of their town, four of them rushed out of the car to an ice cream shop Sunghoon had fought for the right to choose, both Jongseong and Heeseung staying behind; one unconscious and the other too busy wallowing in his own sadness to even utter what flavor he wanted.
Surprisingly enough, Jake ran back to hand him a cup of pistachio over the open window, muttering something about how if he didn’t like it he’d get him a different one, Riki and Sunghoon visibly deflating behind him when he told the witch it was his favorite.
They drove to Heeseung’s house first to drop off his bags, his parents weren’t home- much like everyone else at a Thursday morning, they had jobs to be in, lack of supervision that resulted in all six of them eating in Jake’s house, his moms so happy to see the four of them that they wounded up making enough food to feed them for the rest of the month- Sunghoon was so happy to eat all of it that the eldest had to remind him to keep himself in check, after all, vampires can only eat so much before they’re unable to digest it.
Jungwon was shy of completely mute, giggling behind his hand when they quarreled and thanking Jake’s mother for the food every chance he got, he was like that; always so grateful for everything, Jay almost smiled when they got him a bowl of French fries and his eyes lit up, almost.
Riki was in a hurry to call their parents and let them know Jay was home, he’d scurried off somewhere to do so with both Jake and Jungwon when Heeseung leaned into Jongseong’s ear for the first time that day and whispered, “If you want us to leave, we can do it.”
Heat rose to his neck and the back of his ears, a scowl spreading across his face as he leaned back and looked at a reasonably puzzled Heeseung, ears dulled by the sound of the younger vampire that sat behind them slurping from a green metallic flask he could only guess contained a mix of blood. “I swear to god, if you don’t stop doing that I’ll drive myself back to Busan.” He bit back a big amount of all he wanted to say, Heeseung's round doe eyes now apologetic and puppy-like. “I’m sorry, Jongseong, I just wanted to make sure you’re doing alright.” His voice was low and warm and it felt like a pat on the back, he hated it.
“Stop doing that then! Everyone keeps acting like I’m gonna have a fucking breakdown- I don’t even care that he’s here, I’m used to him not keeping his word anyway.” His head dropped back to the adorned ceramic bowl of ramen sitting on the table before him, angrily chomping down large amounts of noodles at once as both of his friends stared at him wide-eyed, Heeseung’s face growing pained and sad and disappointed as he stared at him in silence, Jongseong knew, he knew it wasn’t Jungwon’s fault their stay overlapped, he knew he probably heard what he said, too, if his quivering lip and fidgety hands when he came back to the room were anything to go by, but he didn’t let himself think about it, not for a second and not ever again, because if he did, he’d have to apologize.
Jake awkwardly cleared his throat, hands on Jay’s shoulders, lovingly massaging the stiff surface as he urged Sunghoon to go back home after his parents called, the group struggling to bring the conversation back to normal after Jongseong’s outburst, the aforementioned not once looking up from his bowl to Jungwon’s small, ever so unnatural figure.
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It was two weeks into their stay in Gyeonggi-do when he went with Heeseung and Jake to the arboretum just outside their town to pick up a wide variety of flowers the Australian needed for a potion he’d been planning since before they left their dorm back in university, a glamour he’d called it, Jongseong had very little knowledge of what such things meant, but he liked walking and he liked talking and he liked trees, so when the two invited him to their walk, he agreed eagerly.
Dried leaves and various figs cracked and came apart under the pressure of his sneakers, Heeseung’s voice echoing through the emptiness of the forest-like playground they all knew by heart, having walked through it so many times during their childhood he was convinced he could do it with his eyes closed.
“Did you guys know glamours don’t work on vampires?” Jake stopped walking immediately, both boys bumping into him like baby ducks. “Why?” He asked, turning on his heel with a complicated look on his face.
“We have a different genetic construction- you know, all that stuff about reflections and shit.” The tallest raised his hands to show lack of knowledge on the subject, cheeks puffed out and bomber jacket bunched up on his elbows when he did so. “If you tried to use it on a vampire, they’d just disappear...most likely, at least; even a polluted breed like me.” He pointed to himself, cracking up a giggle and watching the youngest kick dust with a pout on his lips. “Sunghoon told me he’d try it for me...I can’t just do it myself.”
Jongseong busied himself piling up round rocks by their feet, sitting on the ground like a kid with an arrangement of multiple smooth-looking, similarly shaped rocks scattered around him, a pile of spiky less aesthetically pleasing ones sitting right next to him, probably to be re-discarded in the forest where he felt they belonged; and both of them shot him a knowing glance, staring in silence for a while before he thought to look up and notice them acknowledge him. “What? Are we going back?” A pout sat on his lips, he didn’t want to leave without piling up all the pretty rocks first.
“What’s your opinion on catboys?” Heeseung elbowed Jake as he finished speaking, brows furrowed.
“Excuse me?” Both of them laughed as he looked up, Jake shyly hiding behind the older as if he expected Jay to throw him one of the ugly spiky rocks if he let the train of thought reach a destination. “Y’know, boys that are cats, like, with the ears and everything.” His fingers made peace signs on Heeseung’s head to mimic cat ears, the older folding both his hands over his chest like a cat pawing.
“Those exist?”
“Answer the question.”
Jongseong fidgeted with his hands, raising an eyebrow at the pair; “Uh...They’re okay? I guess? Never met one before.” He stood up, dusting off his jeans and proudly looking down at the pile he left on the humid, leaf-covered ground.
“If I gave you a potion that turned you into a catboy… for a limited amount of time, and minus the ‘boy’ part, would you take it?” Jake looked at him with bright puppy eyes, pleading, and Jay scratched the back of his neck. “So- just a cat, then.” Was all he muttered, looking out into the insides of the forest, unable to keep excitement from bubbling up in his chest at the idea of running through it from a different perspective.
“Yeah, just a cat, one smaller than usual and with a sensibility to extremely low temperatures, preferably staying out of contact with water.” Heeseung let out a chuckle, stepping out from in-between them, and walking further into the forest. “Please? Would you? Just to test a potion, I promise you’ll be okay!” A hand scratched the back of his neck, intrigued, perhaps a little excited, the humid atmosphere of the forest-like surroundings making his naked arms get goosebumps.
He’d initially only expected the cocktail of herbs to taste like soil, maybe a little salty- not too bad, if Sunghoon had agreed to taking it it couldn’t be that bad, anyway. He was wrong, though, the moment he drank it, an aggressive bitterness overtook the insides of his mouth and his face felt like it was burning, his throat closing up as he tried to chug down the lumpy liquid; of course the younger had been willing to drink it, as long as it was Jake’s he’d be willing to try anything.
“So? What’s it like? Feel any different?” Jake’s voice rang like a loud truck in his ears, and the moment he opened his eyes he was suddenly in a puddle of his clothes, all three of his friends looking down at him with huge smiles on their lips. “You’re so cute!” Sunghoon yelled, taking Jay’s entire body into his arms in one swoop, the blonde tabby cat struggling in his hold as he tried to speak but nothing other than meows and growls came out of his mouth.
Heeseung peered at him with loving eyes, reaching out to pet the top of his head gently, though his first instinct was to claw at him, still trying to push Sunghoon’s arms off his body. Jake came into view, visibly holding back from petting him as well, and showing Jongseong a large cup that sat empty with nothing but traces of leaves inside. “You drank all of it and you didn’t die! Congrats, Jongseongie.” His hand sat on Sunghoon’s shoulder, both of them looking down at him. “Let’s name him Milk Carrot.” Said the youngest, the cat in his arms growling in response and clawing at his hands.
“Hey, stop it now, give him some space.” Heeseung spoke softly, reading out of a thick book Jake had been reading before he created the brew. “His ears are sensitive, and he must be hotter than us, we should let him out a little bit.” The elder looked huge from where Jongseong sat, and he only then noticed his tail was moving back and forth from where it poked out under Sunghoon’s hold, the boy setting him down gently on the wooden floor of Jake’s childhood bedroom.
“We can’t let him out, what if he runs away?” The witch’s voice was softer now, and standing beside him to check the book for indications, though immediately upon catching Jay’s pleading gaze, he gave in, heaving out a sigh and reaching into one of his old childhood belongings boxes to fish a collar from a cat he’d owned a few years ago, hastily trying to place it on the blonde.
Jongseong, naturally, refused and pulled his neck away from the hands that held the Australian's late childhood pet’s outfit, though he was immediately met with a stern look. “I’m gonna let you wander about for a while, but I can’t have you out there without a collar. What if someone adopts you and you show up at their house tomorrow fully naked and a human teenager?” He gulped, hesitantly pawing closer to him and hearing the duo behind Jake choir in awe about how cute he looked.
“You’re letting him out just like that? What if he gets lost?” Sunghoon spoke through a pout, pulling on Jake’s sleeve like a child, and the older giggled, looking down at the newly baptized Milk Carrot. “He’s okay, he knows the rules- No contact with water, don’t eat anything and don’t stay out too late.” The witch began listing with his fingers, looking at the cat through his bangs. “We’ll be waiting here for you, alright? Have fun.” He said, opening the window of their second floor and urging him to jump out, both Heeseung and Sunghoon hysterically reaching out to stop him, though Jongseong wasn’t shy of trying his new lifestyle- immediately jumping out, and landing sloppily on his feet over Jake’s front garden.
And off he went, wet grass under the hairless pads of his paws spreading all kinds of sensations through his new body, he walked and walked and walked until he was a good two blocks away from his friend’s childhood home. People cooed at him on the streets, by then he’d mastered the art of scurrying away from grabby hands and overly affectionate little kids, he felt lighter and an itch spread across his back when the wind hit him, he felt warm as though he were wearing a thick winter coat the whole way down the street, the only sweat to ever feel on his skin being on the hairless spaces of his paws.
Initially he didn’t have anywhere he wanted to go, though after giving it some thought, a corny and pathetic idea ran through his mind, feet moving on their own even after such a long time, he knew the way by heart and the moment the image of an old abandoned garden clouded his sight he was already on his way down the subway street, familiar sights catching his eyes and making his heart swell at the memories, he knew there were so many new things he could do- but at that moment he wanted nothing more than to go back in time a few years to when he was the happiest he’s ever been.
Jay’s step dad had an old outdoor café by a large garden in the downtown, not very concurred due to the hidden location- and only ever visited by acquaintances, Jungwon and him used to spend a lot of time there by themselves, sometimes reading and sometimes simply holding hands and listening to music together, the open garden was always alone because people didn’t like the direct sunlight, and when the café closed the flora got out of control and grew past waist-height, though they only ever stopped going after they broke up.
The establishment was even more broken down than before he left for university, it’d only been a year but the wooden structure had begun falling down and a few of the walls were no longer standing fully, the original purpose was a rustic look, though it seemed the harsh weather had taken a toll on the structure. The door was wide open, a sign on it that read “CLOSED” wet and mistreated by the wind, it’d been there since they moved to a bigger place by the center of town.
Cat’s paws left small marks on the cold tiled floor, Jongseong gazed around the insides while hurrying to the garden in the back with a spring in his walk. He wasn’t used to being so small and feeling the harsh surface of the ground so close to his skin.
Pushing the broken back door, sunlight spilled into the room (or what was left of it) from the garden, purple and pink and yellow and red flowers on a flower bed by the entrance, a large wall of trees separating it from the outside and what seemed like an old worn down bench for two placed right in the middle- the one they used to sit in, and his heart sank, noticing one of the seats was beaten down and destroyed.
Jungwon’s backpack sat on the grass, bunched up by his feet, humid to the touch due to the wet and cold weather in the month of October- Jongseong laid sprawled out on a bench seat, reading some old comic book about magical girls, while Jungwon buried his face in another one of his thick witchcraft lore books, feet suspended and unable to reach the floor where they’d constantly get caught in his own backpack.
“What does nudiustertian mean?” His voice was soft and sweet, so gentle and intimate, Jongseong got lost thinking about what it sounded like in different settings, he hadn’t even spared the word a thought when he was already sitting up and looking at him all-knowingly, comic book laying on the table with his index finger marking the page.
“Must be a country.” He spoke, so sure of himself Jungwon glanced back to the page with his brows furrowed. “I don’t think that’s it.” And Jongseong held back a giggle, reveling in the fact that he trusted his judgement so blindly.
“It is, look it up.” Absent-mindedly, he went back to his own reading, Jungwon visibly shifting his gaze to his phone sitting on the table. “It says; ‘Must be plucked on the previous nudiustertian afternoon.’” Doubt bled into his voice, brows furrowing before he finally looked up to the older, who held back a laugh as he began carving on the bench with an old pencil-tip-less compass.
“Hey! What does it mean?” The pout on Jungwon’s lips was evident even without looking at his face, and Jay thought it was the most precious thing in the world. “D ’you think it’ll last if I carve it with the metal tip?” Finally looking up into his eyes, he couldn’t hold back a smile at the younger’s visible frustration- Jungwon was always like that, he would always ask his boyfriend first, before anything else-sometimes even before checking a dictionary.
“It means the day before yesterday.” He said softly, a smile spreading on his lips as he reached out to ruffle his hair, the younger leaning into his touch like a kitten in need of affection. “Use it in a sentence, then.”
“You have a sentence right there, don’t annoy me.” He pulled his hand back, and the witch whined, a book splayed out in front of him and he watched the elder with bright, pleading puppy eyes. “Please? I only understand it if you show it to me…” The pout on his lips grew and Jongseong’s face was bright red, hands tightening around the compass before clearing his throat and looking away from the younger- he was so close, sitting across the table, practically begging for a peck.
“I’d never vandalized before, until I carved this bench on nudiusterian afternoon.”
“Nudiustertian.”
“Nudiustertian afternoon, then.” The younger giggled, pulling out a small penknife from his pocket and carving right next to Jongseong’s own piece of art.
“Woah, where’d you get that?” It spilled out, Jungwon looking into his eyes with a smile on his face; “My dad gave it to me.”
Skipping through the large amounts of grass, he managed to hop on the bench seat still existent and look at the wooden carvings they’d left- one wonky and large that read ‘JAY WAZ HERE’ and a smaller, neater one right next to it; ‘with woni’ it said, all round and delicate- it made him want to cry.
He struggled to sit, gazing out at the wall of trees and listening to the occasional rolling of car wheels in the silence of the garden, faintly hearing the sound of club music from a hole-in-the-wall restaurant down the street.
A fig broke on the ground behind him, scaring him so intensely he jumped back, nearly falling off the wooden bench and meowing in the process- a black head of hair peeking from over the table- it was Jungwon.
“I’m sorry! Did I scare you?” The younger reached his hand out to let him smell it, and for a moment Jongseong forgot who he was, staring at him blankly and expecting him to run away like he always did. “Oh, baby, I must’ve startled you so bad…” His hand moved back, reaching into his pocket and pulling out what seemed like a small, travel sized packet of cat food- Jungwon carried those everywhere, dog ones too, in case he came across strays that seemed hungry.
His mind reeled, unable to help himself from immediately leaning in to lick the liquid off the packet he’d placed on the table, he knew Jake told him not to eat, but the thought of making Jungwon sad made his heart clench, why was he here, anyway? What happened to summer camp? Why did he still come to this place?
“Were you hungry?” He giggled, the prettiest smile in the world spreading over his lips. “I’ve never seen you here before, you have an owner, don’t you?” Jongseong tried to reply, a mewl spilling out. “I hope you didn’t run away from home...I’m the only one that comes here, I don’t think anyone else will find you.”
Jungwon’s voice was gentle, unlike the uncomfortably loud one the others had used on him, it was like he knew already he’d be sensitive to sounds, he knew him so well all the time no matter if it meant choosing his favorite ice cream flavor at a run-down diner a block away from their old high school or protecting his new feline anatomy from discomfort; he reached out, finally, to pet the top of his head, hands warm and Jay allowed himself to enjoy it, his touch as gentle as it’d always been.
The witch sat in the only remaining half of the bench, hand suspended in the air close to Jongseong as if he expected him to pet himself, smiling wide and setting a bag down beside where he sat. “Stay still? I need to check if your collar says something about your owner.” He said, leaning in to check, but the cat immediately ushered away with a hiss, not wanting Jungwon to see Jake’s name written on an old plaque- if anything was, indeed on it- and walk him back to the others, he was yet to figure out why he was still in town, after all.
“Hey…”Jungwon’s brows furrowed, a pout on his lips. ”You let me pet you like a second ago and now you’re hissing at me?” The cat looked into his eyes, both of them sitting in silence before he broke it with a giggle. “You remind me of…” a hand flew over his mouth, eyes brightening as though a dangerous thought had emerged, and Jongseong already knew what he wanted to say- if he could smile too, he would.
“You guys look alike.” He said absent-mindedly, it made him shiver, thinking about how hard he seemed to be trying not to say his name, and Jungwon began humming one of the songs booming on the restaurant down the street, taking out a small container of packed instant ramen and a book from his backpack; but of course, Jungwon was always reading.
“I wonder what kind of books you’d read if you were a human- do you like romance? I think books without romance are boring, it’s not like there’s much to choose from here, anyway, it’s the fifth time I’m reading this.” His rambling dragged on without sparing the cat a glance, a copy of Graceling on his right hand as he held chopsticks in the other, voice muffled by the noodles being placed into his mouth for a second before he disposed not to speak until he finished.
Jongseong sat beside him, cuddling up to the side of his arm where his elbow rested on the table, and allowing himself to enjoy the smell, the warmth, Jungwon. “Po is a little bit underwhelming sometimes. I’ve read this book so much, their chemistry kinda wore out.” It was, amongst many other things, adorable to him how serious the younger one took these things, he used to talk to him about those books all the time- he’d dare say he was there when Jungwon first read Graceling. “Guess I just like the hard-to-get ones, don’t I?” The younger’s brows raised, something surprising must’ve happened in the book, and Jay’s heart swelled, it’d been so long since he heard him speak so freely like this, and he’d missed it.
“You’re a great listener, you know? When I tell Sunoo about these things he goes on his phone and totally tunes out- the other day I read him about Sky and Laurel from love letters to the dead, and he went: ‘oh, Jungwon, you talk like those are real people, go touch some grass’ he didn't even listen!” Jungwon’s book moved to the beat with his words, the younger now holding it up by force of witchcraft to eat the bowl of ramen with both hands, Jongseong felt he couldn’t ever get enough of him, not like this, all raw and without the usual submissiveness that plagued him every time they spoke to each other nowadays, perhaps he doesn’t hate the younger at all.
“I work on Tuesday, if you’re still here I’ll take you to meet him, you guys would get along really well.” His right hand reached to pet him again, and Jay was completely docile, running about the table to gain his attention back and shamelessly pushing his book out of the way, Jungwon giggling and petting him with both hands, all sweet and gentle, like always. "What should I name you? If you're still here tomorrow I'll give you a name."
A finger reached up to tap his bottom lip, thinking, before picking his book back up- Jay deflating at the sight. "Animals usually hate this part of town, you've probably noticed since you're one, but the grass is super outgrown." He spoke while reading, the older staring at him bewildered, Jungwon's familiar mannerisms spreading warmth in his chest. "I've been meaning to fix it or at least cut it a little bit, but for people to find out I still come here would be kind of embarrassing…" a blush dusted his cheeks, and Jongseong got it, he really did.
"It's just- weird, that you're here. With the collar and all, I'm glad, though, it's been kind of boring sitting here in silence all day." He gulped, the younger's borderline cajoling stare digging into his forehead, and he smiled, a look on his face that he wasn't quite sure how to read. "Please don't get lost, okay?" His hand cupped his cheek, the warmest look on his face as his thumb grazed the outline of his jaw, and he felt like he was melting.
They spent a few hours together, Jongseong absolutely drunk in love by the time the sun began going down and the younger was done and packing away his belongings, clingy and handsy when he left, pleading the elder to be there the next day, with promises of both food and water- Jungwon left once it was almost fully dark, the collar around Jay’s neck burning like betrayal on his skin, who did he think he was? Splitting their friend group, throwing a tantrum at his presence, even going as far as running away from his ex-boyfriend’s grandmother in the supermarket for various days, and then suddenly jumping to his lap and letting himself be pampered by him the moment he got the chance.
He couldn’t believe himself, it was outrageous, hypocritical, incorrect, and for sure not something he should ever do again, even if it meant Jungwon coming back the next day and finding an empty bench.
Jungwon…