Hwarang: Past Memories

Chapter 9: Emotions

It had been a little while since Yeo-wool had been summoned back for Hwarang duty. Ji Dwi, or the King rather, had given him bereavement time away to not only bury his own father but to get his things in order with family and such. While he had insisted that he would have been just fine and didn't need it, truthfully, he had appreciated it. 

Today would be his first day back to the compound surrounded by the most handsome and strongest men in all of Silla, his friends. Something about it felt almost like a return to normalcy. 

Yu-ri had helped him put on his uniform before he left, squealing at finally being able to see her brother in his attire. He couldn't help but smile at her excitement. 

Yu-ri. 

He would be lying if he said he wasn't thinking about her even as he walked through the courtyard now. 

He had been worried about her for a moment after her arrival. Maybe being back in the Capital hadn't a good idea... He hadn't meant to burden her or affect her in any way... But one day she woke up rather chipper and with a newfound bounce in her step. He wasn't sure what had caused it, but he was certainly happy she seemed to be finally adjusting. 

He was an uncle now as well! While that was a shock that took some adjusting to, Ji-na felt like she had always belonged with them. He had never really given much thought to kids, finding them high maintenance and noisy most of the time, but his niece was a ray of sunshine wherever she went. Even if he sometimes winced at the similarities between her and her... sperm donor. 

That took the most getting used to and he wasn't sure if he was fully used to it even so. 

But every day he had with Yu-ri and Ji-na was a gift and it filled a part of his heart that he hadn't even realized had been empty for so long. 

That's why as he made his way to his room in the Hwarang compound, he was smiling, even as he opened the doors and his roommates were arguing about something. It wasn't until he was hit with a pillow to the face did he come to his surroundings fully. 

"Aish!" He exclaimed, "Who's trying to mess up my hair huh?" 

The statement did very little to quell an argument that was still ongoing between what appeared to be Moo Myung and Soo-ho? The latter pinning the first against one of the bunk bed walls while it seemed Ban-ryu was trying to calm both of them down. 

"You did what?! Has being a Sacred Bone gone to your head?!" Soo-ho yelled angrily, gripping the man's shirt. 

Moo Myung looked slightly surprised at his outburst and Ban-ryu moved between both of the men trying to tear them apart. 

"How was I supposed to know you knew her huh? I didn't grow in the Capital like a spoiled prince! She seemed just fine. It didn't look like she needed you to save her anyway!" He spat back making Soo-ho cry out in outrage. 

"And just when I thought we'd be one big, happy family again," Yeo-wool said, pulling out his fan. 

The men finally seemed to register his presence and stopped.

Soo-ho's face seemed to blanche, while both Moo Myung and Ban-ryu looked incredibly uncomfortable. 

"Ah, Y-Yeo-wool, we forgot you were coming back today..." Soo-ho said with a nervous smile before turning and smoothing out Moo Myung's uniform. 

Yeo-wool continued to fan himself, eyeing all the men suspiciously before heading toward his bed area. 

"Too many manly hormones in a room. You'd have thought some of them getting married would have helped sort that out," He said, making the others shift uncomfortably and blush.