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Kim Dokja’s soulmate mark turned gold as soon as Yoo Joonghyuk’s hand clamped over his throat when they first met.
It was as if a gentle fire burned over his wrist and he felt something inside of him flicker to life. Kim Dokja finally felt complete. His other half was here with him.
No wonder he enjoyed reading Yoo Joonghyuk’s story. He was reading the adventure of his soulmate.
Kim Dokja smiled as he fell into the icthyosaur’s mouth, clutching his wrist as he entered the monster’s stomach.
The first thing he did was look at his mark. After he pulled down the sleeve of his shirt, Kim Dokja’s eyes filled with tears. What was once a myriad of gray lines was now filled with shimmering gold. He had never seen such a beautiful color for a soulmate mark.
Kim Dokja fondly touched his mark, tracing the outline of a clock.
After briefly relishing in joy, Kim Dokja hid his mark under a watch.
If anyone found out he was Yoo Joonghyuk’s soulmate, he would surely become the target of his soulmate’s enemies. The last thing he wanted to do was be a burden to Yoo Joonghyuk, the protagonist whose story he read everyday to live.
It was better this way.
Ever since he could remember, Yoo Joonghyuk’s soulmate mark has always been filled. The outline of wings on his bicep was a pearlish white, similar to a fresh oyster. On nights when he couldn’t sleep, he’d press against the mark, hoping his soulmate could feel it.
However, the odds of that were slim, Yoo Joonghyuk knew his soulmate was probably dead. Not once in his many regressions has he ever found anyone he could call his soulmate.
Until Kim Dokja appeared.
Yoo Joonghyuk held the man by his throat and dangled their body over the bridge. The brief moment of contact was all Yoo Joonghyuk needed to confirm this person was his soulmate.
At first, he was angry.
Why wasn’t Kim Dokja in his previous regressions? Why appear now after Yoo Joonghyuk has suffered alone for so long?
At that moment, Yoo Joonghyuk decided he didn’t need his soulmate. He dropped Kim Dokja into the waiting mouth of the ichthyosaur without a single regret.
“It’s what you deserve,” Yoo Joonghyuk said before walking away from the ledge of the bridge.
Eventually, they reunited, both never acknowledging their secret bond. Kim Dokja wore his trench coat everywhere, hiding his mark with long sleeves and a cheap leather watch. Yoo Joonghyuk did nothing to hide his. Whenever anyone asked the regressor about the mark, he would scoff and ignore them.
Things came to an abrupt change after the Journey to the West arc and the Kim Dokja Company received a great fable.
After dinner, Yoo Joonghyuk wordlessly gestured to Kim Dokja to follow him. Kim Dokja obeyed and they walked far from the campsite, towards the beach where Kim Dokja found Yoo Joonghyuk confronting the Secretive Plotter in the bubble.
“So, why did you bring me here?” asked Kim Dokja, nervous that he was going to be lectured. “Is it about—”
“Your soulmate mark.”
Kim Dokja froze, a cold shudder ran down his spine. “E-Excuse me?”
“You have a soulmate mark correct?” Yoo Joonghyuk raised an eyebrow. “Show me.”
“…Why? Also, it’s quite rude to ask someone about their mark. Didn’t anyone teach you—HEY!”
Yoo Joonghyuk snatched Kim Dokja’s arm and pulled the sleeve effortlessly. Kim Dokja’s golden mark was exposed to Yoo Joonghyuk’s eyes, which marveled the shape of the clock.
A clock that looked very familiar. The same one that Kim Dokja gave him long ago.
“Is this why you ordered a pocket watch for me?”
Kim Dokja grimaced and tried to take his wrist back. “No! Shut up, this—this mark is for someone else. Someone who doesn’t need me.”
“I didn’t say anything like that.”
“You didn’t have to.”
Kim Dokja’s breath hitched, momentarily caught off guard. He…he just exposed himself…
“Haha, I was kidding. This is uh, completely unrelated. Can…Can you let go of my wrist now?”
“No,” Yoo Joonghyuk said firmly, “not until you admit it.”
“…” Kim Dokja looked towards the ground. So much for a well kept secret. “It’s not you.”
[Incarnation Yoo Joonghyuk has activated ‘Lie Detection Lv….’]
[‘Lie Detection’ has confirmed ‘Kim Dokja’s words as False]
“Damn it,” muttered Kim Dokja. “You weren’t supposed to figure it out.”
“I’ve known since we’ve met.” Yoo Joonghyuk released Kim Dokja’s wrist and began to remove his trench coat and undershirt. Once shirtless, he pointed to his bicep. “Here is mine. Now we’re even.”
Kim Dokja was silent as he stared at Yoo Joonghyuk’s soulmate mark. The tiny set of angel wings could almost be called cute. He couldn’t help but poke it.
“Hnn.”
What…what was that sound? Kim Dokja poked Yoo Joonghyuk’s mark again.
Yoo Joonghyuk swatted Kim Dokja’s hand away. “Stop it Kim Dokja.”
“That was you?!”
Yoo Joonghyuk glowered at his soulmate before putting his shirt back on. “This was a waste of time.” He began to walk away and Kim Dokja immediately chased after him.
“Huh? Wait Yoo Joonghyuk, why did you want to see my mark?”
“Just to confirm, but since you’re not interested, we can just forget this happened.”
“W-Who said I wasn’t interested?”
Yoo Joonghyuk abruptly stopped and Kim Dokja crashed into the regressor’s broad back.
“What did you say?”
“I said, ‘ Who said I wasn’t interested ?’”
Yoo Joonghyuk’s eyes slightly shook before steeling himself once more. “Kim Dokja.”
“What?”
Kim Dokja was suddenly pulled into Yoo Joonghyuk’s embrace, his face resting on Yoo Joonghyuk’s chest. He could hear Yoo Joonghyuk’s heartbeat, rapidly pounding as if it was going to break out of the regressor’s chest.
Yoo Joonghyuk…was nervous?
“May I touch your mark?”
Kim Dokja gulped and nodded. Yoo Joonghyuk took Kim Dokja’s wrist and once again lifted the sleeve. The golden watch shined back at Yoo Joonghyuk and he took a moment to appreciate the shimmer underneath Kim Dokja’s pale skin.
Gently with a calloused finger, Yoo Joonghyuk traced the watch. The hands of the watch were right above a vein and Yoo Joonghyuk rubbed it, savoring the contact with Kim Dokja’s soft and supple skin.
“Mmmph!” Kim Dokja felt electricity run through his veins the moment Yoo Joonghyuk touched his mark. He covered his mouth to muffle the moan that was about to escape. So this was why Yoo Joonghyuk made such a strange sound earlier.
Yoo Joonghyuk noticed the faint blush on Kim Dokja’s cheeks and released Kim Dokja’s hand. “Okay. Everything is confirmed.” He began to walk off back to camp and Kim Dokja quickly followed.
“Hey, what…does this mean? Are we…you know…” Kim Dokja couldn’t bring himself to say the actual words, too hesitant to put a label on this newfound relationship.
“We’re soulmates,” affirmed Yoo Joonghyuk without looking back. “After the scenarios end, we’ll talk again.”
Kim Dokja’s eyes softened and he couldn’t stop a smile from emerging onto his face. “Okay. We’ll talk. Promise?”
“Yes I promise.”
They did not, in fact, talk right after the scenarios.
It took another regression and hundreds of visits to different world lines to finally piece together Kim Dokja and return him to Earth. As stories flew by in the sky, Yoo Joonghyuk held onto his mark as he watched Kim Dokja reform in the hospital room.
Everyone was overjoyed at Kim Dokja’s return. The Kim Dokja Company was reunited at last and everyone crowded around Kim Dokja’s sleeping form until the end of visiting hours.
Yoo Joonghyuk stayed to make sure Kim Dokja wasn’t planning on disappearing again.
As Yoo Joonghyuk watched Kim Dokja sleep on the hospital gurney, he couldn’t help but stare at the golden mark on Kim Dokja’s exposed wrist. Yoo Joonghyuk sat down on the small guest chair and held Kim Dokja’s frail hand. The mark began to shimmer as Yoo Joonghyuk traced the outline of the watch.
“I’m keeping my promise Kim Dokja, so you better do the same.”
Kim Dokja whimpered in his sleep, occasionally trembling and shivering under the thin bed sheets. Worried, Yoo Joonghyuk held Kim Dokja’s hand tighter, assuring his soulmate he was staying. He even went as far as to press a chaste kiss against Kim Dokja’s soulmate mark, earning a quiet moan from his sleeping soulmate. It seemed to calm Kim Dokja down.
Yoo Joonghyuk rubbed the mark at random intervals, caressing it with a certain fondness that has never been seen from the former regressor. All to ensure that Kim Dokja could sleep through the night.
Yoo Joonghyuk didn’t leave Kim Dokja’s room until Lee Seolhwa forced him to.
“Do you really want Dokja-ssi to see you like this?” Lee Seolhwa looked at him with concern, “Go wash up, he’ll be waiting here.”
Yoo Joonghyuk turned to the nearby mirror. His face was harrow, highlighted with dark eyebags and an unshaven chin. He took Lee Seolhwa’s offer and went to a spare room for a quick shower and shave.
As the razor slid on Yoo Joonghyuk’s skin, his thoughts began to wander.
Would Kim Dokja recognize everyone? Would Kim Dokja be able to recognize his soulmate?
Would Kim Dokja accept him as a soulmate?
The multitude of slowly disheartening thoughts made Yoo Joonghyuk let out a sigh and put away the razor. He rubbed his temples to try and destress. He was actually nervous to confront his soulmate.
Suddenly, something began to prick at his arm, specifically where his soulmate mark was. Yoo Joonghyuk glanced and realized his soulmate mark was pulsing abnormally. It felt like tiny needles were stabbing his muscle, and his mark throbbed in pain.
“Kim Dokja!”
Yoo Joonghyuk quickly rushed back to Kim Dokja’s hospital room, avoiding all of the confused nurses and doctors in the hallway. He stormed into the room without any grace and his eyes zeroed in on Kim Dokja’s bed.
A nurse was standing by Kim Dokja’s bedside, holding Kim Dokja’s wrist and rubbing Kim Dokja’s soulmate mark. It almost seemed as if their eyes roamed around Kim Dokja like they were a piece of meat, waiting to be eaten.
Yoo Joonghyuk seized the nurse’s hand, almost crushing their wrist. “What the hell are you doing?”
The nurse loudly gasped and struggled to escape from Yoo Joonghyuk’s grasp. “N-No, please this is a misunderstanding!”
Yoo Joonghyuk’s glare intensified, “You have three seconds before I throw you out of the window.”
“I’m a phlebotomist! I was searching for a vein to draw blood!” The nurse whimpered as Yoo Joonghyuk’s grip only tightened. “Any nurses or security, please help! Help in room 121!”
Security guards entered the room and Yoo Joonghyuk was surrounded. He reluctantly released the nurse and held his hands up in the air.
After convincing the guards that he was part of the Kim Dokja Company and one of Lee Seolhwa’s friends, Yoo Joonghyuk was let off with a warning.
“Assaulting nurses is not allowed in my hospital,” lectured Lee Seolhwa.
“It was just a misunderstanding,” Yoo Joonghyuk said as he used an alcohol wipe to sanitize Kim Dokja’s wrist. “I didn’t know.”
“He had an ID badge.”
“I thought he was feeling up Kim Dokja.”
“Feeling him up for a vein.”
Yoo Joonghyuk scowled. “Why the wrist? Go somewhere else.” He fondly stroked the pocket watch mark. This was his mark. No one else should be allowed to touch it. The prickling sensation must have been a warning that someone was touching what was his.
“Please refrain from causing any more disturbances in my hospital. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have rounds to do.” Lee Seolhwa left the room, which meant Yoo Joonghyuk was finally alone with Kim Dokja.
Yoo Joonghyuk held Kim Dokja’s limp hand, his eyes constantly drifting from Kim Dokja’s face to the soulmate mark. He felt like some longing lover as waited for Kim Dokja to wake up.
...Damn, he was a longing lover.
“Just wake up already…” Yoo Joonghyuk whispered. He softly brushed Kim Dokja’s bangs away from his face. Yoo Joonghyuk never took the time to fully appreciate Kim Dokja. If only he could—
“Mmph.”
The hand in Yoo Joonghyuk’s hold twitched, immediately alerting Yoo Joonghyuk. He stared at Kim Dokja as Kim Dokja’s eyes slowly fluttered open, squinting as he adjusted to the light. “Y-Yoo Joonghyuk?”
Yoo Joonghyuk’s throat went dry.
“You...you’re awake.”
Kim Dokja gave him a fatigued grin. “Yeah...hey there.”
Yoo Joonghyuk was tempted to slam the call button and summon the rest of the Kim Dokja Company, but he held off.
“Kim Dokja.”
“Hm?”
“Welcome back.”
“Ah, thank you Yoo Joonghyuk.”
Yoo Joonghyuk’s finger gently brushed over Kim Dokja’s soulmate mark, “Before anything else, we need to talk.”
Confused, Kim Dokja nodded. “I-I see. Have you found someone else—”
Yoo Joonghyuk held back an insult, and gently pressed a kiss to the watch mark. “You’re my soulmate, why would I need anyone else?”
Kim Dokja’s eyes widened before tears gathered in his eyes, “B-But I thought…”
“Stop thinking. That’s dangerous.” Yoo Joonghyuk frowned and then unceremoniously stood up to climb onto Kim Dokja’s bed and straddle him. “No more misunderstandings. I used to not believe in soulmates, but then we met.”
“Ah—”
“And I still refused to believe in them.”
“O-Oh…” Kim Dokja looked disappointed.
“Then...we overcame the scenarios. With you leading us, we won.” Yoo Joonghyuk lowered himself even more, his face almost touching Kim Dokja’s face. “Then you had to go and sacrifice yourself and split into two. I felt incomplete, and fought for you to return. I traveled to different worldlines and spread our story.”
Kim Dokja blinked as Yoo Joonghyuk paused. “Yoo Joonghyuk?”
“What I’m saying is that you are the only person I would ever go through so much for. My soulmate.” Yoo Joonghyuk’s forehead pressed against Kim Dokja. “I’m sorry I made you wait so long. Will you still accept me as your soulmate?”
Kim Dokja gazed up into Yoo Joonghyuk’s pained eyes. He could see that Yoo Joonghyuk held so much guilt for neglecting his soulmate for so long.
After a moment of silence, Kim Dokja sighed and lightly patted Yoo Joonghyuk’s cheek. ”You idiot. I’ve been waiting for those words for so long.”
Yoo Joonghyuk was startled as Kim Dokja found Yoo Joonghyuk’s mark on his bicep and turned his head to press a chaste kiss on it. “All you had to do was say so. I could never say no to my dear protagonist.”
The air from Kim Dokja’s lungs gave out as Yoo Joonghyuk tightly embraced him, almost to the point of suffocating him. He let out a laugh and hugged Yoo Joonghyuk back, overjoyed that his soulmate was here with him.
Kim Dokja briefly recalled his stint as the Most Ancient Dream watching over Yoo Joonghyuk’s regressions and idly stroking his wrist as he watched the protagonist go through the scenarios. The mark kept him cemented, a steady anchor that he would meet his soulmate once again.
After the touching reunion, Yoo Joonghyuk finally notified the rest of the Kim Dokja Company about their leader’s awakening. Yoo Joonghyuk stayed on the bed with Kim Dokja, clutching his soulmate as close as possible while half of the room cried.
“Hmm?” Han Sooyoung had a teasing smirk on her lips, “Why are you two so close all of a sudden?”
“I’m catching up on lost time.” Yoo Joonghyuk said as he cradled Kim Dokja close. Kim Dokja happily laughed in agreement.
There was no way Yoo Joonghyuk was going to let Kim Dokja feel alone. Never again.