Chapter Text
“I'm heading out!”
Yunho didn't even wait for Seonghwa’s answer as he stormed out the door, too excited for today. It was the day of the showcase of one of Yunho's dance classes, the advanced adult class. And as their teacher, Yunho was more than excited to lead them through this.
He arrived only 15 minutes later, immediately joining his class in the waiting room. Everyone was already there, warming up, going through the choreography or trying to calm their nerves. They all looked up when Yunho swung open the door, radiating what they could only describe as sunlight and excitement.
“Hey guys, I hope you practiced well for today!”
He went through the group, greeting everyone, giving them a high five or even trying to playfully annoy them a little when he noticed someone was particularly nervous.
“Jun, you're so nervous you look like you're about to fall over. I promise you'll do just fine. I know you practiced hard.”
He placed his hands on his student's shoulders and made him look at him.
“I believe in you.”
He smiled at the small nod before shoving him towards another dancer, who seemed more excited than anything.
“Arin, could you help Jun calm his nerves a little?”
He grinned mischievously as she agreed, having to hold back a chuckle at the glare he earned from Jun. He knew that his student had a crush on Arin. Now he'd be too preoccupied with trying not to fumble in front of her to be nervous about the performance.
Walking over to the table he grabbed a muffin, shoving it into his mouth. He knew Mingi had dropped them off earlier, as he always did this when there was a showcase.
Another one of his students, Yujun, called out as he pressed a cup into Yunho's hands.
“Yunho! I brought the coffee you asked for.”
“Ah, you remembered! Thank you.”
Usually he'd ruffle his hair, but Yujun was obviously styled already, so he refrained from it and just happily sipped his coffee. He had asked him for it yesterday at practice, since he knew Yujun always stopped by a Café before a showcase.
“Yunho! I made cookies for my daughter's birthday yesterday, do you want one?”
He smiled at Jia and took one of the chocolate chip cookies.
“Thank you! And please wish your daughter a happy birthday from me.”
“Will do!”
She placed the rest of the cookies with the muffins and went to talk to the others again. For a moment he just stood and watched. He was incredibly proud of this class. They were all super hard-working and talented, he'd argue some might even have the potential to become professionals. Today's showcase was part of the open day his dance studio was holding to attract potential new students. It wasn't a high-stakes performance, but his class still treated it like one.
Having finished his coffee and cookie, he clapped once to get their attention.
“Alright, guys! Today's the day. Whatever happens today, I know you'll do amazing. And even if you make small mistakes, keep your chin up and continue like nothing happened. We're all just human, mistakes are common and nothing to be afraid of. You all practiced hard, so show them what you got!”
He threw a fist in the air before holding it out in front of him. His students gathered closer.
“Give it your all! Go get em!”
Accompanied by a loud “let's go!” from everyone they bumped their fists together before throwing them up.
Yunho led his class to the side of the stage. For this part he wouldn't be joining them, he'd have his own solo later on. But he would not miss the opportunity to watch.
They were soon called on stage and, as expected, they did absolutely amazing. Some of them made mistakes, but those were so minor you wouldn't be able to tell unless you knew what you were looking for. And by the time they all filed off stage again, everyone was vibrating with energy. Yunho gave everyone a high five as they walked past him.
“That was amazing!! Go to the waiting room, grab water, some muffins and cookies and then we'll do a small recap,” he informed them.
As soon as he was back in the waiting room with them, he noticed how the nervous air had shifted into relief and excitement. They were all glad it was over and all of them seemed satisfied. Yejoon pressed a muffin and a small cup of coffee into Yunho's hands.
“Let's raise a toast to the performance!”, the man called out. Yunho chuckled at his antics and raised his cup, followed by everyone else.
“To this amazing performance! I'm proud of you!”
He smiled happily as he drank his coffee, watching his class beam at him happily. They might be adults, but even adults loved praise and thrived on it.
They all stayed and watched as it was Yunho's turn on stage. The dancer would perform a solo to showcase his skill as a teacher.
As he stepped on stage he noticed some familiar faces.
Jongho, Wooyoung and Seonghwa were in the audience. The eldest had probably stopped by after picking the two youngest up from university. He smiled at them and got into position.
As expected, his performance was flawless. Backstage he was not only greeted by a cheering class, but also by a very excited Wooying launching himself at Yunho. He barely caught him, groaning softly.
“Yuyu! You were amazing!!!”
Wooyoung happily nuzzled into him and decided to plant a kiss on his chin.
“Woo, you can't just keep throwing yourself at m- yah! Don't kiss me!”
He dropped the cackling Wooyoung and wiped his chin before locking eyes with the other two.
“I'm always amazed watching you dance,” Seonghwa said. Jongho nodded.
“I agree. I know you love teaching, but you're really wasting your talent, you could be on the big stage!”
Yunho sighed softly and ruffled Jongho's hair, much to his dismay.
“I don't want to though and I've told you that before. I'm happy here.”
Wooyoung took one look at Jongho before he burst out laughing.
“Dude! Your hair-”
“What about my hair?”
Seonghwa chuckled too.
“Yunho used some of his lightning magic. It's sticking up in every direction,” he explained.
“Hyung!!!” Jongho whined.
Yunho simply burst out laughing.
“Alright, alright. Yunho, do you need a ride back?” Seonghwa asked.
“No, I took my car. And I want to actually practice a new choreo on my own that I want to teach. I promise I'll be back for dinner.”
The older nodded.
“I'll hold you to that. It's enough I always have to drag Joong out of his studio, don't make me come and get you too,” he playfully scolded.
Yunho laughed at that.
“You won't have to, I promise.”
He soon figured out he couldn't quite keep that promise. Well, it wasn't like Seonghwa had to come look for him, but as Yunho found himself on his back on the floor, head spinning and panting harder than he should be, he realized he definitely wasn't safe to drive himself home. With a grunt, and crawling on all fours to avoid a hard fall should he black out, he made his way over to his bag on the floor and grabbed his phone. Seonghwa was on speed dial, so he pressed that, sitting down next to his bag.
“Yunho? Everything okay? You usually don't call.”
He chuckled inwardly at how perceptive Seonghwa was.
“Hyung? I'm… I'm not really feeling well. Everything is spinning and I feel like I'm gonna pass out…,” he mumbled. He knew there was no use hiding just how shitty he felt.
“What- you were just fine earlier, what happened? I'm on my way.”
He heard something muffled, probably Seonghwa yelling out to someone and covering the microphone while doing so.
“I'm sorry, I don't know what happened. I was just practicing like I usually do and then had to lay down cause I felt I was gonna fall if I didn't,” Yunho explained.
“Alright, hang in there. I'm bringing Yeosang and Mingi.”
He knew why. Yeosang might be able to heal him and Mingi would be driving his car back. But he still didn't like that he'd worry them as well.
“I'm not sure I can stay on the phone. I think… I think I'm gonna…”
Yunho didn't even get to finish his sentence before everything went black, his body tilting to the side, hitting the ground with a soft thud. As he had been sitting and partially landed on his bag, he luckily didn't hit his head.
“Yunho? Yunho! Shit-”
Now Seonghwa was even more worried. Given how he abruptly stopped talking, followed by the thud and clang of the phone hitting the ground, he was sure Yunho had passed out. How could it get this bad so fast? Yunho had been completely fine just a few hours earlier. He handed the phone to Yeosang as he got into the driver's seat. He was too worried to wait for the other two to buckle in and just started driving to the studio.
“He likely passed out. He's not responding anymore…”
Yeosang cursed under his breath.
“And you said he looked completely fine?”
“He was completely fine. I used a small spell to check him over after the performance. You know how he gets, I wanted to make sure he wasn't overworking himself because he was so excited. He was a bit exhausted, but nothing worrisome.”
Yeosang hummed softly, eyes locked on the phone in his hands. The call was still ongoing and if you listened closely you could hear Yunho breathing. It sounded entirely too fast.
“I hope it's nothing bad…”
Mingi's voice from the backseat sounded small and incredibly worried. Seongwha instantly felt bad. He had forgotten about Mingi's anxiety.
“He'll be okay. It's probably nothing,” he tried to assure him. Mingi just hummed, unconvinced.
As soon as they parked the three ran to the studio. Yeosang disconnected the call, pocketing the phone and rushing inside. They found Yunho slumped over his bag, face flushed, breathing fast and shallow, still unconscious.
Yeosang immediately cast a spell to try to figure out what exactly was wrong.
“He has a high fever. Why did it develop this fast? That's unusual, your spell should have detected it earlier, even if it hadn't started…”
He watched as the dancer stirred and opened his eyes.
“Yeo…?” He asked quietly, unable to identify who was hovering above him.
“Yeah, it's me. You got a high fever, Yu. Did you feel off this morning?”
Yunho thought for a moment.
“No… no, I felt fine. A bit tired, but fine,” he answered truthfully.
“Alright, then let's get you home. I'll have an easier time helping you there.”
Yeosang looked at the other two. Mingi looked incredibly concerned and Seonghwa’s face was scrunched in worry and confusion.
“Hwa, please drive Yunho's car back. Min, why don't you pick Yu up and head to the car? I'll be driving.”
He knew they had planned for Mingi to drive, but he knew Mingi would be too worried to stick to it now, so he'd decided to change the plan. Seonghwa seemed to understand.
“I'll meet you there.”
He grabbed Yunho's car keys and left. Yeosang helped Mingi maneuver the tall dancer onto his back before grabbing his bag and phone. They drove home, Yunho laying down in the backseat with his head in Mingi's lap. He had passed out again.
Once Yunho was in his bed, Yeosang began to work on healing him. To his surprise, Yunho was barely reacting to the magic.
“What the…”
He frowned deeply and tried again. While he managed to lower the fever a little bit, it wasn't nearly as much as it should have been. He knew his spell was correct.
“That's… what's happening?”
Yeosang was alone with Yunho, so he was pretty much just talking to himself.
Reluctantly, he left his side to go seek Seonghwa's help.
“Hwa?”
He stepped into the kitchen.
“Oh, Yeosang! Is he any better?” Seonghwa asked. He frowned heavily as Yeosang shook his head.
“I tried. I know my spell is correct, but he's barely reacting to it. I know it can happen since we don't know the exact cause of the fever, but it's worrying me. This whole situation is strange.”
He watched as the older hummed and turned back to chopping the vegetables, seemingly lost in thought.
“For now let's use normal medicine and wet cloths. We need to keep an eye on him. I agree, this is strange…,” Seonghwa finally said.
“Alright.”
Yeosang went to grab some medicine, water and small towels. Once back in Yunho's room he tried to wake him for the medicine. When that didn't work he carefully made him take it while unconscious, manipulating the water with his magic in such a way Yunho wouldn't accidentally choke on it. Once that was done he wrapped wet towels around Yunho's calves, wrists, neck and finally placed one on his forehead.
He was worried for his friend. So worried in fact he couldn't bring himself to eat. They had all come in one by one to check on Yunho and Yeosang, even Hongjoong had willingly come out of his studio after having been informed about the situation. Yeosang stayed the whole time, kept changing the towels and monitored the fever. It luckily didn't seem to rise, but it was also incredibly stubborn.
So, imagine his surprise, when, the next morning, Yunho woke up completely fine. He was sitting up in bed, awake and alert, wolfing down the breakfast he had been brought by the healer. He let Yeosang fuss over him and check him thoroughly.
“I don't understand! I was sure I'd have to take you to the hospital today. How…?”
Yunho shrugged.
“I'm better now, am I? Let's not dwell on the past.”
Though Yeosang was not convinced, he eventually relented.
“Fine. But I'm keeping an eye on you. And you're staying home.”
Yunho let out a noise of protest.
“But I'm completely fine now! I can't just skip the classes…”
“Yunho, you were also completely fine when Hwa saw you yesterday and only a couple hours later you lost consciousness on the studio floor with a fever high enough I was tempted to take you to the ER then and there. You're staying home.”
He glared at Yunho, who was pouting and giving him big puppy eyes. But he wouldn't back down.
“Ugh, fine…”
Yunho eventually gave up.
“Let me go take a shower though.”
Yeosang grumbled a bit, but let him get up and take a shower.
After the shower Yunho sat down in the garden. What had happened? He wasn't sure. He had felt the spell from Hwa checking him briefly. Surely he would have said something if the spell detected it. But the older hadn't said anything.
A rustle startled Yunho out of his thoughts. He was alone outside, the others were busy. What was that? Wild animals usually didn't come by. Fearing an intruder, Yunho stood up to investigate.
He searched along the fence. Nothing. He couldn't see anything.
Another rustle.
Maybe an animal after all?
Suddenly, as he looked at a bush, two yellow eyes stared back at him. Human eyes. He startled and stumbled back falling onto his butt. When he looked up they were gone. Had he imagined it?
He got up to head back inside, but was pushed as soon as he turned his back to the bushes.
Okay, he definitely hadn't imagined it. He scrambled back to his feet and rushed inside. Whatever that was, it creeped him out. Badly. As he slowly moved to peek out the window to check if it had followed, he was greeted by a face.
His own face.
With bright yellow eyes, twisted into a smile so wide it shouldn't be possible.
He stumbled backwards with a yell, falling once again. Yunho scrambled to get as far away from the window as possible.
In his panic he hadn’t realized that Seonghwa had come running. So, when he was suddenly grabbed, he screamed once again and struggled, only slowly calming down when the older muttered a spell that was forming a soft blanket over his frayed nerves. He once again passed out, this time from the panic and shock he had just gone through.
When Seonghwa heard the scream he dropped everything and instantly ran to find Yunho. He found the tall dancer in full-blown panic, scrambling to get away from the door, but his long limbs weren't cooperating well. Seonghwa tried to grab Yunho and hold him close, but Yunho only screamed again.
“Yunho! Yun! It's me, hey, calm down!”
He struggled to hold on to his panicking friend. What had him so frantic? Realizing Yunho was not hearing him, he chose to use a calming spell on him. He sighed in relief when it worked, but frowned as he once again held an unconscious Yunho.
“Seonghwa? What just happened?”
It was Hongjoong, who stood in the door, panting slightly from having run from his studio. Yeosang came in after Hongjoong, now crouching next to Yunho.
“I honestly don't know. I found him panicking and scrambling to get away from the door. When I touched him he screamed again. I had to use a spell to calm him down…”
Hongjoong had crouched down as well now and wrapped an arm around Seonghwa.
“It was necessary, you did well. Yeo, how is he?”
“Heart rate and blood pressure are elevated, which is a given with the panic. Otherwise he seems fine. Let's get him to bed.”
They worked together to get Yunho back into his bed. The dancer stirred awake not long after. It took a couple seconds for him to remember, but when he did he practically flew out of his bed to close the blinds.
“Yunho! Hey… what's wrong?”
Seonghwa gently pulled him away from the window.
“Hwa… something… something is out there. I heard some rustling and checked the bushes. There were yellow eyes staring at me! When I walked back to the house I was suddenly pushed. Inside I locked the door and checked the window to see if it had followed and… and… shit-”
He was almost hyperventilating. Seonghwa sat him down.
“Yun… breathe. Slowly…”
He guided Yunho through a breathing exercise, just like they usually did for Mingi.
“Thank you… Hwa, what stared back at me wasn't a stranger. It was my face. My face with bright yellow eyes. And the smile… it smiled so wide it shouldn't anatomically be possible!”
A brief moment of silence followed. The other two, who had also been in the room, but had stayed quiet, frowned deeply. Hongjoong spoke up.
“Yun, is it possible you saw your reflection and your mind twisted it cause you were scared?”
Yunho's head whipped around so fast Hongjoong was briefly scared he'd hurt himself.
“I know what I saw! It wasn't my reflection, it was way too solid!”
Hongjoong nodded.
“I'll have San survey the garden and bushes around the house when he's back, would that make you feel better?”
Hongjoong smiled when Yunho nodded softly.
Yeosang, having noticed the soft flush on Yunho's cheeks, checked for a fever again.
“You're warm again, but not as bad as before. Take a nap. Nothing will happen, alright?”
Yunho looked down at his hands.
“Can you stay with me…?”
Yeosang smiled softly and nodded.
“Of course.”
While Yeosang wasn't a big cuddler, if his friends needed it, he'd happily oblige. That's how they ended up cuddled up on Yunho's bed, the taller one with his face buried in the healer's chest. It wasn't long before both fell asleep.
Hongjoong decided to check the garden himself as well. He checked the window next to the door for any traces of it being touched, but couldn't find anything. As he traced the edges of the garden, San returned home.
“Joong! Hwa said you need me outside?”
“Ah, Sannie! Yeah… something really weird happened today, can you check for any traces that someone was here?”
San frowned, but locked in immediately and knelt down, casting a spell. A soft, green glow spread across the earth, radiating outward from San. Hongjoong simply watched him. He'd always envy earth casters for being able to survey the ground like that. It was an incredibly handy ability.
“Huh… I can't find anything, I'm sorry. What happened anyway?”
Hongjoong sighed softly and went back inside with San, explaining to the younger.
“Okay that's weird. Yunho wouldn't just freak out like that if it was nothing… he definitely saw something,” San said as they sat down at the kitchen table, sipping a coffee Seonghwa had made. The oldest had also joined them.
“Exactly what I'm thinking.”, Hongjoong responded,
“It's weird he reacted this strongly in the first place. He's usually not one to get scared easily.”
They quieted as Yunho and Yeosang came downstairs. San couldn't help but coo softly at them. Yunho looked like a disheveled puppy while Yeosang had a few strands of hair sticking up in random places. They both looked like they woke up only a few seconds ago. Yeosang stole Seonghwa's coffee, who just chuckled at him.
“Good morning you two.”
Yunho sat next to San.
“Did you find anything?”
San could only shake his head. Yunho sighed at that.
“I've been thinking… maybe I hallucinated? I'm sick after all and we don't know what this weird bug is…”
He didn't look convinced himself. But what other explanation was there if there were no traces? San hugged him.
“We don't know. But if it freaked you out that bad, it was at least real to you. That's enough reason to investigate.”
Yunho smiled softly at that and leaned into the hug. His usual energy was entirely depleted. Right now, he was glad Yeosang had forced him to stay home. If he had hallucinated like that at the studio he was sure they would have called authorities to get him admitted immediately.
“Wanna go play games?”
That snapped him out of his thoughts.
“Oh you bet!”
He smirked at San’s offer. The two headed upstairs, ready for an afternoon full of games.
Hongjoong and Seonghwa had stayed behind at the table, Yeosang having wandered off to read in peace.
“You don't believe that it was a hallucination.” Hongjoong stated. He didn't need to ask, he knew Seonghwa well enough.
“I don't. This is too weird… my instincts are screaming at me that this is far from over.”
Seonghwa sighed heavily.
“Your instincts are rarely wrong. I don't know how, but we better prepare…”
For 2 days, nothing happened. By now, Yunho had accepted the possibility that it had only been a hallucination. What else could it be? They also hadn't figured out what exactly had Yunho passed out in his studio, but since the incident he also hadn't spiked another fever. So today he'd be going back to work. He was excited as ever, today he'd be teaching the little kids, one of his favorite groups to teach. But what got him even more excited was the fact Seonghwa had insisted on joining.
“You know you're not just gonna sit and watch, right? You're totally participating.”
Yunho smirked.
“I know, I know. You told me before.”
Seonghwa chuckled at his friend.
“I'm just saying,” Yunho replied with a shrug, “the kids will absolutely love you.”
They got into the car, Seonghwa was driving them to the studio today.
“I hope so.”
He usually never joined Yunho's classes, despite the other having offered before. But this time, he simply felt the need to keep an eye on Yunho.
Yunho’s prediction turned out to be correct, the kids were all over Seonghwa. Literally. Some had taken it upon themselves to try to climb up his body.
“Yah! Leo! You don't just climb people!”
Yunho grabbed the whining and wiggling 4 year old off his friend. Seonghwa was simply laughing.
“I don't mind.”
“Hyung, you really shouldn't just let them do whatever they want…,” Yunho scolded lightly. He had let go of Leo, who immediately went to Seonghwa again.
“Let me, I don't get to have children around me a lot. Well, not counting you lot,” he quipped, laughing at Yunho's protesting “hyung!”.
With Seonghwa there, it was almost impossible to get some of the kids to focus properly. They found the wind caster way more interesting than their dance teacher, even when Yunho used some magic to show them small tricks. Especially when Seonghwa did the same, at one point startling Yunho badly by making him float. By the time the class was over, the tall dancer was pouting.
“I'm never inviting you again.”
Seonghwa just laughed.
“Yunho, they're kids and I'm new, of course I'm more interesting.”
He teased, poking him as he did.
“They'll pay attention to you again next time.”
“Fine…”
Yunho was still a bit pouty, but had to admit Seonghwa was right.
“Anyway, why don't I run across the street to the convenience store and grab us a bite to eat?” Seonghwa offered.
“Oh that would be great! I'm gonna stay here and review some stuff. Can you bring me some gimbap?”
“Sure! I'll be back in a couple minutes.”
After Seonghwa left, Yunho started practicing some moves. It wasn't long before he started to feel like he was being watched.
“This is ridiculous…” he mumbled to himself while closing his eyes, taking a deep breath. The moment he opened them again, his blood ran cold. The… thing was staring at him in the mirror. Not as his reflection. It was behind him. Yunho whipped around, facing the thing that was pretending to be him.
It looked like him, but… dead. The skin was sickly pale, almost translucent. It was wearing a black shirt and black pants, both ripped. The cheeks were sunken in, the entire body basically skin and bones.
“No- no you're not real. This is a hallucination… you can't- you're not real!”
He took a step back as the other Yunho took a step forward. His eyes locked on the door behind it. He decided to bolt for the door. But that thing was suddenly in front of him. He could have sworn it didn't move-
He ran left. It appeared again. Back to the door.
Shit.
That was only a hallucination. It had to be. Couldn't he just push through it? Something kept him from doing that. Where was Seonghwa?
He ran back to the mirror, when he suddenly tripped. Or was he tripped? The thing watched him, the grin growing wider, if that was even possible.
He slammed into the mirror, back first and unable to protect his head as it snapped back. It shattered on impact, shards upon shards of sharp glass raining down on Yunho, leaving minor cuts along the exposed skin. Scrambling to get back up more glass dug into his hands and knees, leaving deeper cuts. He slipped with his hands on some glass as he pushed himself up, landing back on the floor with a grunt, more shards digging into his skin. His eyes frantically scanned the room. Was he alone again?
“Yunho!!!”
That voice, that wasn't Hwa.
“Sannie?”
“Yunho, shit- what happened? Hold still…”
He saw a brief flash of green before he felt the shards of glass around him float away. San made sure to get even the smallest shards away from Yunho. And even those that had embedded themselves into Yunho's skin. The dancer couldn't suppress a soft whimper at the stinging that was left behind.
He felt himself being gently propped up against the wall.
“What happened?”
Seonghwa was kneeling in front of him, face scrunched in worry. He felt some of Seonghwa's magic flow through him, an easy spell to figure out the extent of the damage.
“You got cut up quite badly…”
“Hyung… hyung, it happened again. It came back- the hallucination came back and it freaked me out so bad I ran around trying to get away then I tripped and fell and-”
He took a deep, stuttering breath, feeling panic rise. Once again Seonghwa enveloped him in a hug, not caring about the blood that was now getting all over him.
“Hey, shhh… we got you. You're safe…”
Suddenly the door swung open once again.
“I heard a crash, but I had to make sure my kids were safe before I could come, is every- Yunho?! What happened to him?!”
San looked at who just came in.
“Yeonjun! We got it under control… he crashed into the mirror and it shattered on impact. Can you handle the incident report so we can get him home?” San asked. He was glad it had been Yeonjun who had come running, at least it was a friend who saw Yunho like this.
“I'm assuming Yeo will make sure he'll be okay? I will, don't worry about it. I'll also take his afternoon class, I don't have anything planned.”
Yunho could only watch as the scene unfolded. He felt lethargic and everything was spinning. His head hurt so bad… He surely had a concussion. And he was so tired.
“Yunho, no, don't go to sleep.”
He hadn't even realized he had closed his eyes until Seonghwa shook him lightly.
“Let's get you home so Sangie can heal you.”
He hummed softly.
“Why…why is Sannie here?” He tried asking, hoping he'd have an easier time staying awake if he tried to talk.
“I met him downstairs, he decided to bring us something from the cafe after his shift. Then we heard the crash…” Seonghwa explained. Yunho felt himself being moved, one of his friends on each side as they helped him walk. He could only hum in response, trying hard to focus on staying awake.
Once they arrived Yeosang immediately took over. He had just come back from his job at the cram school, or Hagwon.
“What the hell did you do??”
He had Yunho lay down on the couch as he worked on healing the wounds.
He listened to Seonghwa explain.
“Yunho, hallucinations don't trip you up!” Yeosang protested after hearing everything.
The dancer was feeling much better now, having been healed fully by Yeosang. He only felt some lingering exhaustion and dizziness.
“Well what else would it be? And I never said it tripped me up, I tripped over my own feet in my panic!”
He pulled his knees to his chest. Of course he knew that the hallucination theory was stupid. He'd been pushed the first time, and now he had been tripped. Hallucinations couldn't do that, but it was the only explanation he had. At least the only one he thought could make sense.
Hongjoong, having been informed by Seonghwa, joined the little group.
“Yunho… do you know anyone who could hold a grudge against you? Something big enough to curse you?”
The dancer shot a glare at Hongjoong.
“Don't be ridiculous! A curse? Why would someone do that? I haven't done anything to anyone!” He practically growled. Hongjoong winced at the harsh tone.
“It's just a theory-”
“It's a shit theory! And have you ever heard of a curse like this? Cause I sure as hell haven't! It's just a hallucination!”
He abruptly stood, rushing to his room, still mumbling about how ridiculous that was. But was it?
The others just sat there in stunned silence.
“... He's never lashed out like that before.” Hongjoong finally said.
Seonghwa placed a hand on Hongjoong's shoulder.
“It wasn't your fault. I guess you were just the outlet… let's give him some space. But Hongjoong, have you heard of a curse like that? I also think it might be one, but I've never seen anything like this.”
The other shook his head.
“We should do some research,” Yeosang offered, “go to the library and check for any mentions of a curse like this.”
“I agree. I have tomorrow off, I can go check.” San offered.
“Sounds like a plan, I’ll come with you.” Seonghwa agreed.