Chapter Text
Jongin woke up feeling…well rested, but still weary enough to fall back asleep. He didn’t however as a tickled itched the back of his throat. Smacking his lips and feeling how dry his mouth was, Jongin tried to sit up hoping to find something to quench his thirst, but his forehead collided with a hard surface. Bringing his hands up, they barely got far as they lay flat against a slightly rough plane. Moving his arms to the side, he was met with the same grainy, wooden surface. It was obvious that he was trapped inside of something, but what, he was unsure. With surprisingly little force, he was able to move the surface above him; however, this allowed dirt to seep through the cracks.
The dirt clung to him as he crawled out, and the fresh air filling his lungs made how thirsty he was more prevalent. Disregarding his surroundings, the Jongin allowed his feet to carry him wherever he needed, which just so happen to be a stream. He plunged his face into the shallow water, gulping in the direction of the incoming water, but no matter how much he drank, the burning thirst did not dissipate. In fact, it made it worse, and his stomach churned in protest before forcing the water back out of him.
Still hunched over the stream, he caught a glimpse of his reflection; though it was too dark to see his face clearly, the glowing of his eyes was as clear as the moon shining through the canopy. He shook his head to make it go away, and it did nothing but make him dizzy. He then looked around to see if he knew where he was, but nothing seemed familiar. The longer he sat, the more his throat burned, the louder forest around him sounded, and the stronger the scents around him became. Through the amalgamation of senses, a particularly delicious smell entered his nostrils, and his feet once again carried him to the source. In the blink of an eye, Jongin was at the edge of a village. He didn’t question why he was there, only following his urge to quench his thirst.
Much of the night was a blur, but by daybreak, the burn had dulled significantly. It was still there, but at least now he could think clearly. A bit of his memory returned to him, and the buildings around him were now familiar. It was strange how quiet it was this late in the morning, but he didn’t question it as he made his way home.
“Mom! Dad! Nunas! I’m home!” Jongin called as he slid open the door and slipped his shoes off. His family was probably still asleep, so decided to let them be for now. He went straight to his room to lie down, but he barely had time to close his eyes when a piercing scream rang through the room. It was his mother standing at his bedroom door, looking frail and as white as a ghost. “Mom?”
“Stay away!” the woman yelled as he approached, but when he didn’t stop, she ran.
He chased after her, somehow getting in front of her as she ran for the door and grabbed her as she ran into him. “W-What’s wrong? What happened?” He did not get a response as she fainted in his arms, and he had no choice but to catch her. As he held her close, he noticed the red staining her clothes, and it was only then that he saw that his hands were red. Another yell drew his attention, and he looked up to see his father standing in shock. Placing his mother against the wall, he asked, “Dad?”
“Did you come back for revenge?” The old man asked, looking as if he had seen a ghost.
“What are you… Stop talking nonsense and tell me what’s going on!”
“This is my fault,” the man murmured, but before Jongin could question him further, footsteps could be heard outside.
After banging on the door, whoever it was barged in yelling, “Old man Kim, there has been an incident!” It was one of the farmers, and he froze as he took in the scene in front of him: Jongin covered in dirt and blood standing in between his collapsed mother and his terrified father. The farmer ran, and Jongin turned back to see that his father was gone. He finally looked at himself, seeing the mess he was covered in and why everyone was scared of him, but soon his father returned brandishing his sword. Jongin ran out of the house to avoid his father, but the man stopped by the door to check on his mother.
He wanted to stay and ask questions, but the farmer soon came back with a mob of angry people with weapons ready. Jongin scaled the wall surrounding his family’s property and began running; however, at almost every turn there was a dead body, some he could recognize and some that he couldn’t. Seeing them brought back the hazy memories of the previous night when he first re-entered the village, and now he was painfully aware of the metallic yet sweet taste in his mouth. Had he done this? Had he…killed all of these people? He looked at his bloody hands, red and brown caked around his talon-like nails, and his head spun and stomach churned, and Jongin found himself releasing the contents of his stomach onto the dirt, the sight of red splattering at his feet only making the reality harder to bear.
Hearing the mob getting closer again, Jongin started running again; not stopping until he was out of the village, and he could no longer hear anyone following him anymore. Once he was sure he was alone, he broke down, letting the earth soak up his tears and the air take in his sobs.
He realized after only the first day on his own that he didn’t feel hungry or thirsty anymore like a normal person did, and he didn’t feel tired either. Even if he could feel hungry, Jongin didn’t think he could stomach anything after what he did. He vowed he wouldn’t go near another person again, in fear of a repeat.
As the days continued and he wandered through the forest, Jongin wondered what he had become to do something so horrible; however, no matter how hard he tried, he could not come up with an answer. He remembered a decent portion of his life, as anyone would, but after a certain point, namely the past year, it got fuzzy up until the moments after he crawled out of the ground.
“There you are.” Jongin was startled out of his thoughts by a voice behind him, and he whipped around to see a familiar shorter man behind him.
“Baekhyun-hyung!” Jongin was seconds from embracing his friend, the older man ready to meet him halfway, but seeing his own hands—luckily a bit cleaner now, but still sharp—he pulled away. “N-no, stay back. I might hurt you.”
“Hurt me? You could never hurt me, Jongin.” Baekhyun stepped forward, intending to hug him again, but Jongin jumped back several feet, surprising himself with the movement.
“Just…stay away, please. I-I’ve hurt people.” Jongin hugged himself instead, wincing when his own claws dug into his arms, but he nearly fell over when Baekhyun appeared in front of him in the blink of an eye. Baekhyun was quick to grab him around the waist, though, and Jongin gasped when the older man pulled him close.
“I know, and it’s my fault,” Baekhyun sighed.
“B-But…” Jongin was shushed as Baekhyun then brought his hands to swipe at his warm, wet cheeks, breaking the salty trails.
“No, it is. I shouldn’t have left you, and I should have been there when you woke up. I was so worried after I heard what happened.” Baekhyun sighed, leaning forward to connect their foreheads before chuckling lightly. “I’m so stupid for getting back to you so late, but I guess that’s what I get for wanting all of my preparations to be perfect.”
“Preparations?”
“Yes, so you come and live with me and my family. Don’t you remember?”
“I…” Jongin took a moment to think back, averting his gaze as a memory trickled back to him. Baekhyun had promised him that he would get better soon, and once that happened, he would take him back home with him to meet his family, Jongin’s new family. “I was sick,” Jongin recalled. “It was so bad that I thought I dreamt all of your promises, and then…”
He had died. He remembered being so tired that day, to the point he could barely open his eyes. He knew it would happen eventually, having been very prone to sickness as a child, but that time he didn’t get better. His health only continued to decline. What made it worse is that he had just met Baekhyun. Baekhyun who was so talkative and lively, despite being very pale and cold to the touch. Jongin thought he was sick too, and didn’t feel alone in his suffering; however, Baekhyun stayed energetic while Jongin only grew wearier as the days passed.
“I wasn’t sure if I should have followed through with it, I’ve never converted anyone before, but seeing your father’s devastation…and the thought of never seeing you again…”
“Hyung, what are you talking about? What happened to me? How am I still alive? Why did I…” Jongin’s throat clenched as he thought about all the blood, the fear in his parents’ eyes.
“I should have told you sooner, and I’m sorry but…You’re a vampire now, just like me.” Jongin was stalk still, having no idea what that meant, and Baekhyun just embraced him again as he said, “Don’t worry about it too much right now. I will explain it all later when we are home. We’ll teach you everything, so you won’t hurt anyone again.”
At the idea of never hurting anyone, Jongin melted into Baekhyun, this time soaking his shirt with tears and muffling his ragged breaths in a sturdy set of arms.