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Seonghwa was always Hongjoong’s first.
He remembers the first time he saw him, scowling menacingly and drenched in layers of the brightest aquamarine. The Kim Dynasty was on its last leg, but still, his father saw it fit to invite young scholars from all over the land to study in their needlessly lavish library.
He remembers Seonghwa pointing out errors in every single text he pored over, eyes wide and scrupulous as he took in the written words of the Kim Dynasty’s wisest lecturers. He was never wrong, but that didn’t make the other scholars despise him any less. He was always willing to stand up for what he thought was right. And that left Hongjoong breathless with wonder at how courageous another man could be.
They took aimless walks down the long, winding paths of the perfectly manicured forests just outside Hongjoong’s home. Just to talk. And in Hongjoong’s case, just to listen. He always loves Seonghwa’s voice. It’s just the right tonal blend of deep, fathomless seawater and bright, shining light.
Seonghwa was always Hongjoong’s first fight.
He remembers the first time he saw him, running with eyes like a blazing fire and two arms weighed down by bags of someone else’s gold. Hongjoong was a naval officer then, a man of the law. His head was in the right place, but deep down, his heart knew this position of power was never meant to last.
The ocean crashed and roared beneath them as Hongjoong tracked a panicked Seonghwa to the edge of his docked ship. The Beginning of the End. The man was a wanted criminal, a pirate with little regard for the laws of the land.
Hongjoong backed Seonghwa up to the very edge of the ship, sabre extended gracefully, and called out to the dastardly menace with disgust.
“I’ve got you now, pirate! Hand over the gold and I’ll spare you the rope.”
And Seonghwa laughed and pulled his own cutlass with a finesse that Hongjoong would’ve envied if he could’ve seen it more clearly while staring down his nose.
“And what if I wanted ye to catch me, Officer Kim? What then?”
Hongjoong circled his prey in something close to a crouch and frowned at Seonghwa.
“And why would you want that?”
Seonghwa smiled devilishly and rushed forward unexpectedly, ducking under Hongjoong’s sabre to expertly disarm him and pin his arm at the small of his back. With lips that smelled of honey and liquor, he whispered in Hongjoong’s ear, “Someone pretty as ye would make the finest treasure of ‘em all, dontcha think?”
At which point, the ship started moving. Further away from land. Further into the deep, unknown seas.
But even as the ship tore through the waves like a flaming sword through a weak willow, Hongjoong broke free from Seonghwa’s grasp and pushed forward to continue their deadly dance.
Seonghwa was always Hongjoong’s first mate.
He remembers the first time he saw him, sun-kissed skin shining in the ungodly afternoon light and singing some shanty about beautiful women and good food.
Hongjoong wasn’t a Captain yet, but he was the closest thing to it. He worked long hours and made all the right moves over time to acquire his own vessel and take off for the high seas on his own journey.
Seonghwa was right by his side. As he had been since that first day when they met on the deck of his old employer’s brig. He was a fierce champion to Hongjoong’s steady, measured leadership, a wild dog that would froth and clamp on at the first sign of danger to their ship.
He watched Seonghwa learn all the roles of the ship, so he could teach anyone that joined them how to do their jobs well. So that Hongjoong wouldn’t have to. He was the Captain now, after all, and he had a course to plot.
They were looking for a treasure that no man had ever dared to search for in all the time that they were alive. And Seonghwa swore to Hongjoong that he would fight to the very end to help him find that treasure.
Seonghwa was always Hongjoong’s first kiss.
He remembers the first time he saw him, holier-than-thou smirk blooming on his face as he stared down a group of bullies that had cornered some kid at school with the intention to harm.
Their high school was relatively bland, but Seonghwa could turn even the dullest plasterboard into a technicolor dreamscape in Hongjoong’s eyes. Hongjoong was just some class president, but in their school, that meant something. And everyone knew better than to cross him, because his best friend and confidant would always be there to intervene.
With bruised knuckles under white bandages, Seonghwa’s soft fingers would flit across Hongjoong’s blotchy face after every fight. He’d apologize for losing his cool, for fighting when he knew that Hongjoong preferred words over violence.
Hongjoong understood though. Sometimes when he would try to stop the bullies or write up a delinquent, they’d get mad and take it out on Hongjoong. And Seonghwa couldn’t just stand by while Hongjoong was getting hurt.
Seonghwa kissed him under the big oak tree behind the school, away from prying eyes. His lip was split from a fight and his tongue tasted like sour copper, but Hongjoong relished in the blazing hot fire that shot up his spine when Seonghwa pushed him back against the ancient oak.
Their eyes met, after a time, and Hongjoong knew that he could never be mad at Seonghwa for too long.
Seonghwa was always Hongjoong’s first love.
He remembers the first time he saw him, sharp cheekbones and a sharper jawline drenched in the neon glow of the always shining skyscrapers that split the city skyline into glass shards. The territory was primarily run by mega-corps and drone-bosses, but Hongjoong thought it was beautiful when Seonghwa explored it.
The pounding bass of the club was deafening, and Hongjoong could barely contain his excitement when the statuesque beauty walked right up to him. He was just a tech merchant and a really bad one at that.
But Seonghwa pulled their hips together, and they swayed under the swirling holographic koi fishes that were dancing in the fake sea above them. It was an optical illusion created by hundreds of small drones, but Hongjoong swore he heard the gulls and smelled the sweet salty tang of the sea when Seonghwa dipped him and swooped in for a messy kiss.
They ended up working together for years. Building mechs and taking them apart just to see how they worked. Seonghwa was always smarter than Hongjoong, but he let him take the lead in everything they did.
Hongjoong’s heart woke up when it first saw Seonghwa in that club, and it hadn’t slept a wink since that night. It danced wildly to the thumping percussion of Seonghwa’s lips on his as they said I Do in an abandoned church just outside the city one night.
Seonghwa was always Hongjoong’s first loss.
It was in the middle of the night. An assassin was paid by one of the Kim Dynasty’s biggest adversaries to take out the King and his entire family. But they didn’t account for one thing, Hongjoong wasn’t alone that night.
When the assassin’s sword struck, it was not Kim Hongjoong who was impaled by the shining blade. It was his tutor, Park Seonghwa, who had thrown himself in front of the sleeping Prince to exchange their fates without a second thought.
It was a few weeks after Captain Park had taken Officer Kim hostage. They had grown closer over those weeks, playing card games and sharing tales of their childhood. When a rival pirate crew overtook The Beginning of the End, and their own first mate kicked in the door to the Captain’s quarters and saw Hongjoong dressed in his Naval uniform–he launched a throwing knife skillfully but missed his mark. Captain Park Seonghwa stood above Hongjoong’s trembling form with blood dripping from his fingers and wide, angry eyes glaring at the intruder. He drew his sword and danced his last dance.
It was at the end of a hangman’s noose. When the Royal Navy caught up with Captain Kim Hongjoong and his loyal band of pirates, Seonghwa fought through twelve men until he was finally captured. It was enough time for the other men in the crew to rush their Captain away to safety.
Later that week, Hongjoong donned a disguise and joined the crowd that day to watch as the floor fell out beneath Seonghwa and his feet flailed helplessly. Hongjoong took a deep breath to scream, but his new first mate threw a hand over his mouth and dragged him away before he could let it out.
There were other times, but Hongjoong didn’t particularly want to linger on them.
Seonghwa was always Hongjoong’s first.
Hongjoong looks out at the wasteland in front of him, and he remembers. He could never remember before, but now he can. As his eyes survey the blazing fires and bombed out buildings that aren’t even safe for the cockroaches anymore, he remembers.
His gas mask is on its way out the door, and his legs cry for rest after days of walking. But when he looks to his side and sees his new partner for this mission, he straightens up and smiles like a maniac. The wary stranger does not return his wild grin.
It’s Seonghwa. It’s always Seonghwa. And even though Seonghwa doesn’t know Hongjoong yet… he never does… he knows that this time will be different.
Because Seonghwa was always Hongjoong’s first, but this time he would make damn sure that he would also be his last.