Don't lose focus.
I swear to god Wooyoung, do not lose it.
You can do this.
You can do this.
Just breathe.
San is right here.
But...I just can't give him any kind of warning.
Fuck, I should've told him what that douchebag looks like, or hell even showed him a picture. Not like I had any of him to begin with, but I could've figured out something.
But nope, we're in for this now. I can't dwell on that. No turning back now.
I've got this.
Beating him, and everyone else here, should be easy. They won't know what hit them.
The room was met with a tense silence, everyone eyeing up their opponents. All except for Wooyoung, who glared straight ahead, and the pathetic excuse of a man that stared straight back at him. For once, Wooyoung didn't back down when he received this type of look from this specific person, he held just as much power now. He would not allow himself to get sucked back into the past.
Sangwook cocked his head to the side, finally looking away to look at the other people in the room. Wooyoung watched with a disgusted look plastered across his features before he remembered where he was and forced himself to remain expressionless. Deep down, he hated the way that man looked at San. He knew that the other two hunters were quick to realize there was a vampire in the room. And that couldn't mean anything good, especially since Wooyoung knew Sangwook's past all too well.
"So, where's everybody from?" A voice filled the room that made Wooyoung internally gag. It was Sangwook's sickening voice, he spoke in an eerily casual manner, a nearly psychotic smirk on his features as he reached for the deck of cards in the middle of the table.
"I don't see how any of that matters." Wooyoung was the first to speak up, his voice deep and laced with venom. He glared straight ahead, ignoring any other looks he was given.
I'm sorry San, but I have to deal with this.
I can't stand on the sidelines for this.
God...how was I ever attracted to this stupid fucker though? Hell, in "love" even. Disgusting.
"Well aren't you a charmer." Sangwook sneered, his smirk turning into a snarl as his eyes looked up and down what was visible of Wooyoung.
"Well?" Wooyoung shrugged, telling himself in the back of his mind to stop engaging. But he couldn't listen to that thought at the moment. "We're here to play cards, so let's play cards."
"I'm just being polite, baby." Sangwook's features hardened, but that sinister smirk remained.
"I am not your fucking baby." Wooyoung hands shook as he spat those words. He saw red in that moment, trying everything in his power to not launch himself across this table. He knew that wouldn't help the situation, but by god was he enraged. "Do not call me that."
"Damn someone's got some attitude." The other hunter in the room remarked, obviously buddy-buddy with Sangwook from the way he looked over at that man, smirking.
Wooyoung kept his mouth shut, trying to stop his hands from shaking. His breath stuttered with every inhale and exhale, which could show many things to anyone who was clueless.
San though, he realized all too well in that moment what just happened. From Wooyoung being so worked up, to that man using that specific word in that way. He scoffed, turning his head away for just a moment before returning it to the star of the night.
"Can someone else shuffle?" San stated monotonously, drawing the attention now onto himself rather than it lingering on his boyfriend.
"I'm sorry?" Sangwook seemed offended by the comment, features reflecting that along with disgust. "You did not just—"
"But I did." San leaned forward on the table, smirking. His elbows rested on the surface, hands folding for his head to rest on. "It was a simple request. You know, to keep the integrity of the game. Usually the dealer isn't apart of the game."
Sangwook scoffed, mouth hung slightly agape.
"You'd better watch yourself bloodsucker." Sangwook's features lost all expression when he said that, which made the comment come off even more as a threat.
San chuckled, locking eyes with the hunter. "You don't scare me."
"Alright folks, enough of this chitchat, let's get on with what we're here to do." The older man to Wooyoung's right spoke up, looking across all of the others, obviously annoyed at this delay. "Some of us have places to be after this."
"Hand me the cards Wook." The other human reached out to the hunter, currently coming off as the most levelheaded in the room. But he also seemed the most bored. "He wants a dealer, then I won't play."
Hearing that shortened name only made Wooyoung's throat tighten up even more. It just proved that that human was indeed working with Sangwook, as "Wook" was what he went by to anyone involved in his gang. For some reason, that man thought it kept his identity concealed or whatever.
Wooyoung was snapped from his thoughts when he felt a tap against his foot. He was fearful for a moment, before he felt it again. The sensation came from his left, which prompted him to look over at San for just a second. The vampire, while expression remained unchanging, was able to give the smallest of signals to show that he was still here for Wooyoung. It was also a reminder to focus on the task at hand.
Taking a deep breath, Wooyoung swallowed heavily, then locked away all other thoughts in his head. He couldn't dwell on anything right now, he couldn't let the past resurface, all he had to focus on was the here and now. Which happened to include one of the reasons he had remained so broken and empty.
No! I will not let him get the best of me.
Taking in another heavy breath, Wooyoung watched as the human shuffled the cards. Nothing appeared off, no sly tricks, at least right now. One by one, cards were dealt out to each of the players, the human running his mouth about nonsense. Everyone knew the rules, yet this guy felt it was necessary to fill the void with his voice.
Let the game begin.
This estate consisted of what seemed like three separate buildings, but in reality it formed a half-rectangle, where either of the side buildings connected through the back-half of the middle. The connecting paths were minimal between the buildings, that wasn't to say there weren't any, they just needed to know the right places to look. The semicircle in the middle of the buildings was where the cars of all the guests were parked, along with a big, elegant fountain. In fact the whole thing looked elegant. Too bad it was built on bad intentions and illegitimate money.
San and Wooyoung's mission took place in the left-most building when looking at the estate from the outside. It held many different rooms, which led the crew to believe that's where most of the private games were held. In the house plans they found that a lot of money went to excessive soundproofing in the walls, and just as much went into security cameras. They didn't worry about it though.
The building in the middle would be where Seonghwa and Yeosang would enter later in the night once the coast is clear. It appeared to just be for show, but in reality, it held the most secrets. On the surface it seemed like a normal house, but it really was an entire office space, if it could even be called that. There was bound to be information in many secret crevasses, but guards would lurk the grounds as well, which is why they needed to wait.
Then was the right-most building which held a large room that seemingly made up an in-house bar. The upper floor appeared to have bedrooms and whatnot, but they weren't interested enough to look more into those. This bar-like area was where Jongho and Mingi would be going, as not only was it a bar, but plenty of other methods of gambling happened within the space as well. This was the more common space, meaning more people to distract, but more people to keep track of.
After waiting a decent amount of time, Jongho opened the side door to the van and stepped out of it. He took in their surroundings, giving Mingi the okay to step out as well. The air was dry and dense, a low fog sticking to the ground. Even as vampires, they could tell it was a warm night out.
"Hey!" The two turned back around to see Yunho hanging out of the side of the van. "Stay safe. And do not hesitate to call me in."
"We will." Jongho and Mingi said at the same time, earning some shock as they looked to one another.
Yunho showed the smallest of smiles before ducking back into the van hidden away in the shadows, concealed from any unwanted eyes. Looking to one another and breathing in the thick air, Mingi and Jongho turned on their heels and made their way onto the property.
There weren't many guards that they could spot outside, leading them to believe there must've been more inside. Or perhaps, they just entirely misread the dynamics of this place, but that was unlikely.
"You go in first." Jongho said under his breath, waiting back a few steps. "We should act like we don't know each other."
Mingi hesitated, looking between the building and Jongho. He was silent, though no words were needed as his eyes showed his slight uncertainty. Jongho sighed.
"Fine, we go in together." Jongho muttered, gravel crunching underneath his feet with each step he took. "Inside we separate. And I don't know how many times I have to tell you, but I've got your back."
"It's not that I don't trust you." Mingi also practically whispered, leaning down slightly so his words didn't travel as far in the slight wind. "I have to agree with what Wooyoung said earlier, I don't know if it's some weird bondee feeling that we're both having for whatever reason, but something's off. And no, it's not me being separated from Yunho."
"I think you're both paranoid." Jongho shook his head, trying to sound dismissive. Though deep down, he couldn't blame them, he was worried as well. They were in foreign territory here, separated into small numbers, with every other person they see more than likely to be an enemy. "Just stick to the plan."
Mingi let out a soft hum in acknowledgment, putting on his game face now that they walked through the opened part in the fencing and were actually on the property. There was no time for slacking now.
Walking confidently, the two didn't even have to give a password to get into the building, the bouncer just held the door open and let them walk in. It was slightly suspicious, but they tried to not think too much into it. The guard was face-first in their phone after all, not appearing to care about their job in the slightest.
The two were met by bright lights, surprisingly soft background music, unsurprisingly loud people conversing, and of course the smell of alcohol. Mingi looked around the room with a slight look of disgust, taking in the larger handful of drunk people that lingered around. All humans, so at least they didn't have to worry about hunters down their throat.
Despite his better judgment, Mingi went straight for the direction of the bar, telling himself he could blend in here best. He didn't have to drink anything, just order something to occupy his hand. This way, he could try to get to know the bartender and see if anything was off in this way.
Jongho took a different approach, examining the different games being played all around the room. A wide variety of tables and machines scattered about, most being occupied by people. It was definitely strange, because the architecture of the building made it seem like it was old, worn down, and like it belonged in a forgotten movie, yet all the technology, lighting, and most of the furniture brought it into modern times.
For a second Jongho watched Mingi, nodding to himself as the taller appeared to be in the right mindset now, focused on their mission. Tearing his gaze away, Jongho strolled over to a roulette table which sat two humans already engaged in some kind of game. He sat at the only other free seat, introducing himself under a fake name he always used whenever he was allowed to actually partake in missions.
The two humans were taken aback by the sudden newcomer, but they didn't seem entirely opposed to it either. Jongho didn't care, because in this spot he had a great view of the majority of the room. And even though his back was to Mingi, he could listen in just fine behind himself to the other vampires conversations. So even if the humans wanted him to leave, Jongho wouldn't have listened, this was now his spot for the night.
He didn't entirely know the game being played, nor was he truly partaking in it. He listened to the rules being told to him, even then he didn't quite understand the point of this human game. Shrugging his shoulders, he just went along with it simply to continue blending in, all while gaining as much as he could from his surroundings.
"Eternal sunshine and rocky are both in their places." Yunho said with a level tone, eyes not leaving the handful of screens that lined the very back wall of the van. The screens showed only a few select cameras previously hacked into by Yeosang, but mostly were there to allow easy control of choosing whose hidden mic to listen in on. There were a few other things to focus on, but Yunho had already forgotten what Yeosang had told him, luckily Hongjoong knew what to do and picked up the slack.
"Are you sure you don't want me here captain?" Yeosang questioned, watching his precious equipment being used carelessly by Yunho. He was about to take some steps forward, but his shoulder was caught by Seonghwa's hand. That had him freezing immediately.
"I'm sure Yeosang, we need you in there using that brain of yours." Hongjoong turned around in his chair, sending the younger a reassuring smile.
Yeosang's shoulders fell forward in defeat. He let out a heavy sigh, hands tracing over his hidden weapons over the front of his body. He felt extremely vulnerable without his sniper rifle or more specifically without his bow. Even if he couldn't bring it with him inside, he wish he had thought to of stored it in the van somewhere.
"Hey, we got this." Seonghwa's soft voice broke Yeosang from his trance, the shorter looking up to see Seonghwa's cold features, but warm eyes.
"You have an opening, so take it." Yunho tore his eyes from the screens to look over his shoulder. He examined both Seonghwa and Yeosang before they stepped out of the van without another word. He sighed, tuning back to the screens. "He's worried."
"Who?" Hongjoong asked, the word being followed up with a sorry excuse of a laugh. He as well was focused on the screens, an earbud in his ear, the other hanging before him. Usually he didn't like wearing such things, since his hearing was so sharp anyway, but it was needed in this case.
Yunho scoffed, shaking his head. "Actually, good question. I was originally referring to Yeosang."
"Yeah, we put him out of his comfort zone a bit." Hongjoong mused, taking the smallest of glances to the side to examine Yunho's stressed shoulders. "I guess I put a lot of us out of our comfort zones though."
Again, Yunho let out a sound that resembled a scoff. "Yeah, but it'll be alright. It has to be alright."
Outside of the van, Seonghwa and Yeosang both pulled up masks over their faces to help conceal their identities. Being clad in dark clothing, they easily blended into the darkness of the night, but it would be different once in the artificial light of the house. Seonghwa wore some bigger clothes, his jacket concealing more weapons than Yeosang's, still, he pulled up the hood over his head. Yeosang also pulled the hood of his shirt over his head, the material being more sheer than anything. He wore what he was comfortable with, which is clothes that would allow him speed and less resistance, therefore a better defense. Another difference was that Yeosang carried a small bag that hung across his body, holding many different tools he thought he might need.
"Use your speed and get to the door. From that angle you can tell me if it's safe for me to use my speed." Seonghwa's voice was lowered, a tone he always uses when on a mission. It was slightly menacing yet controlled around the other members of the crew.
"Got it." Yeosang breathed out, nodding his head once.
His eyes were locked on his location, then faster than light, Yeosang was where he wanted to be. He moved so fast that not even the fog on the ground moved until a few solid breaths later, and even then it was hardly noticeable. Yeosang pressed himself against the bricked walls, peering through the tinted windows to see if there was any movement inside. After not noticing anything, he looked back in the direction of the shadows he just came from. His eyes scanned over the graveled semicircle, looking for any sort of movement.
After nothing jumped out at him, Yeosang pulled out a laser pointer that he always keeps on him for this exact purpose. Pressing the button, a thin green laser pointed in the direction he came from. He had specifically designed this tool to not be seen on cameras, and hard for the normal, untrained eye, to pick up on. The rest of Ateez knew how to spot it though, and also knew that it was Yeosang's way of saying for whatever previous plan established to continue. If the light was red, that was his sign that there was danger.
After seeing the little green dot, Seonghwa took off into the night. The fog moved significantly around him, the gravel picking up in some places as well. Yeosang pocketed the laser pointer once Seonghwa showed up on the opposite side of the door, also pressed against the wall to stick as close to the shadows as possible.
They locked eyes with one another, giving a short but firm nod of the head.
Yeosang stepped out of the shadows, reaching for the door handle and pulling it. He titled his head in annoyance and let out a huff when it showed resistance. Crouching low, he searched his small bag for his lock picks, immediately getting to work when he found what he was looking for. He was laser focused on the lock, while Seonghwa watched their surroundings in a similar manner.
"Got it." Yeosang said under his breath, the lock clicking right after he said those words. He pushed the door open, pocketing his tools and walking in on the low.
Seonghwa took one final look over the premises before backing inside, closing the door behind him. He and Yeosang looked around and listened for any kind of movement, finding themselves to be alone at least for the time being. That didn't stop them from walking in a way that would create as little sound as possible, and hunching over just enough to not be super uncomfortable. Before their search could completely begin Yeosang stopped Seonghwa with a sharp, but quiet, sound.
The older turned around, trying to figure out why he was stopped, quickly realizing that he was being handed a pair of gloves. Not thinking twice, he took the gloves and slipped them onto his hands, having previously been bare and at a risk to leave fingerprints behind. Yeosang also slipped on a pair of gloves, and now their search for information and answers properly began.
The minutes started to tick by one by one, soon turning into an hour. Wooyoung sat back in his chair, unable to hide his annoyance at this point. He didn't care about keeping a poker face anymore, he was pissed. It was a bit hypocritical why he was so worked up, since it revolved around Sangwook cheating the game, but Wooyoung had his reasons.
Sangwook wasn't even trying to be slick about it, he was so obviously cheating, almost like he was rubbing it in Wooyoung's face. The human to his right was way too oblivious to realize, and of course the other human and hunter were on Sangwook's side, so they wouldn't say anything. And San, well he seemed a bit preoccupied, with what Wooyoung didn't know.
"Anyone need a drink?" Sangwook leaned forward on the table as he made that offer, voice still as sickening as his has been.
"You've offered that already, and the answer likely remains the same." Wooyoung sneered, still keeping his vision on the weird patterns on the ceiling as the next hand of cards still wasn't being dealt. "I know mine is."
"No reason to be so rude, sweetheart." Sangwook returned, lowering his voice which only pissed Wooyoung off further.
"Stop with the fucking nicknames." Wooyoung snapped, his head remaining tilted back but eyes locking onto the fucker that spoke. Slowly his head lolled forward, his eyes showing their proper glare. "It's not cute."
"You two have a history?" The other hunter questioned, sounding confused, but it was all just a taunting act.
San narrowed his vision at this hunter. While Wooyoung and Sangwook seemed to be going head to head, San and this guy without a name seemed to be doing something similar. The reason likely was just the fact they sat opposite of each other around the table, so it was easier to send a glare here and there.
"If it isn't fucking obvious enough." Wooyoung commented, the words escaping through his scowl.
"He's the one that got away." Sangwook remarked, leaning over to the other hunter as if he were sharing a secret, yet his eyes remained locked on Wooyoung.
Wooyoung scoffed. "And what's that supposed to mean?"
"Listen, I don't care to listen to your relationship problems. Can we please continue with the game?" The older man grumbled, mean, tired eyes looking between everyone.
"Yeah, let's." Sangwook shrugged his shoulders, straightening in his seat. He turned to the human dealing, motioning for him to come closer, where Sangwook whispered something to him.
Wooyoung turned to San, letting out a shaky breath. San looked to his boyfriend, flashing the smallest of reassuring smiles, but a fire burned inside him. They were both minutes from abandoning the plan and taking matters into their own hands. That was extremely dangerous to do, but their combined rage could burn down this entire building.
The human scurried away, only to return with a box, placing it on top of the pile of poker chips.
"This will be the last round, winner takes all." The dealer announced, shuffling the cards skillfully in his hand.
Wooyoung breathed out, confused at the sudden change. The box was interesting enough, even more confusing as to why it was closed, no one being able to see the contents of what they would be winning. Even the older man questioned this, but was told to be quiet and just go with it. It should make the game more exciting, that's what was claimed as a recovery.
The couple sent one last look to one another before the round began, knowing of all the times to try to win, this was the only one that mattered. They had their share of wins through the night, but nothing compared to how they predicted the night would go. They didn't know what was in that box, whether it would be something that would work for them in their favor, or a mere trap, but either way, they were ready to take on the consequences of obtaining it.
After all, there was something odd about this rectangular box, which wooden engraving depicted a storm on the ocean. In the center of the lid, a compass rose beautifully burned into the wood. It reminded Wooyoung of pirates, which was too coincidental for his liking.
Jongho had grown bored out of his mind, leaning lazily against the table. He learned nothing, and from the sound of it Mingi was in the same situation as him. The drunk humans before him were absolutely no help, and he was getting way too close to leaving this place entirely to search around for stuff on his own. But no, he would stay here and do what he was told. Plus, he'd never leave Mingi alone.
Something shifted in the air. Jongho sat upright, looking over his shoulder at the entrance to this whole place, which hadn't let anyone in in nearly a half hour. But that wasn't what he was concerned about. Something smelled off, and there was a faint noise that he couldn't decipher. He turned around the other way, locking eyes with Mingi, who seemed to sense something was off as well.
All things turned upside down in seconds.
The smell in the air got stronger, something Jongho wasn't able to recognize. No, it wasn't some sort of airborne drug or gasoline, he's legitimately never smelled this before, and that concerned him. He almost stood from his spot when the unthinkable happened, he heard two clicks, prompting him to freeze.
"Ah, so you were faking being drunk." Jongho nodded his head to himself as he looked over the two humans before him, who now looked a whole lot more sober than moments before.
They were both holdings guns, just below the table. It didn't take a genius to understand the sounds of the clicks from earlier, plus the way the humans now looked at Jongho.
Then things started to make a little bit more sense. They were in a place involved in those strange substances that seemed to cause vampires and hunters to lose their strength and whatnot. This smell to the air, and the sudden move to attack only after it appeared, it must be the gas form of that stuff San and Wooyoung had to drink back at the fight club.
"Stay still bloodsucker." The first human stated, appearing way too cocky for a mere human.
Jongho chuckled, forgetting to listen in behind him to see if Mingi was okay.
"What makes you think, a human, can out-power a vampire?" Jongho questioned rhetorically, one hand trying to reach for his concealed gun, but he was quickly told to stop moving again. "You aren't even hunters."
"We may not be now, but we will be." The second human sounded maniacal, his features only adding to that effect.
"What?" Jongho couldn't stop the word that escaped his mouth. Brows furrowed as he tried to process what that statement meant.
It didn't make sense. Humans were born humans. Hunters were born hunters. Vampires were born vampires, and of course a human could be turned into a vampire if they survived the transition. Sure there was also the extremely rare exception of those like Yeosang, but that was it. It shouldn't be possible for a human to turn into a hunter.
"Shut up you idiot, you said too much." The first human scolded the second, lowering their guard for just a moment.
Jongho heard footsteps approaching from behind, but he couldn't check to see for himself. Just as he wanted to, the person, Mingi, stopped beside him. The two humans started another commotion, yelling obscenities at Mingi about how he needed to leave, this didn't involve him, and they'd deal with him later.
But that was all Jongho needed. As fast as he could muster, he reached into Mingi's jacket pocket and pulled out the handgun he knew was concealed there. Even faster, Jongho shot the two humans in places that would make them unable to fight back, but not kill them quite yet.
Mingi didn't seem taken aback in the slightest, features remaining stone cold. Acting just as fast, he pulled out his other hidden gun and turned on his heels, ready to shoot anyone else that was wanting to start problems. Back to back, Jongho returned Mingi's handgun to his pocket, pulling out his own gun which he much rather prefers to wield. It wasn't much different, just more comfortable to his mind.
"Anyone else wanna start something?" Jongho called out, scanning around with his gun at all the other people, who hadn't moved from their seats, hardly looked startled at that.
Those expressionless faces were only worrisome for both Mingi and Jongho. For some reason, these humans were willing to die on this hill. And if that was what they wanted, then so be it.
"Mingi, only worry about yourself. Understand?" Jongho said under his breath, ensuring it would be loud enough for just the other vampire to hear.
"But—"
"No buts. Protect yourself first and foremost." Jongho breathed out, eyes turning into a bright red, now striking some fear into only a couple of the humans. "I can handle myself."
"Are you hearing gunshots?" Yeosang located Seonghwa across the room to let out his panicked whisper.
Seonghwa paused his searching, standing motionless before very slowly nodding his head.
"It sounds like its coming from—"
Seonghwa cut himself off when the lights to the room suddenly went out. He felt frozen for a few seconds too long, his heart accelerating when a scream filled the blacked-out room. One that belonged to an all to familiar voice.
"Yeosang?" Seonghwa called out, completely filled with worry as he tried navigating through the room essentially blind.
He got no response.
Frantically Seonghwa searched himself for a light source, but after another pained cry he simply allowed his eyes to illuminate the area before him. It wasn't as efficient, still, it was something.
"Yeosang, use your eyes!" Seonghwa called out, bumping into countless objects as he tried to get to where he saw a very faint red illumination. "Respond to me, please!"
"It hurts." Yeosang cried, words filled with pain, hardly being choked out. He sounded louder than the volume he usually speaks at. "Seonghwa, make it stop!"
"Make what stop?" Seonghwa ran, sliding across the ground on his knees and taking Yeosang into his arms. The young vampire was already on the ground, hands clawing at his ears. "Yeosang, stop, you'll hurt yourself."
"My ears! Someone is messing with the frequency or something." Yeosang continued to cry, leaning completely into Seonghwa's coldness. He pressed the base of his hands against his ears, which only made the high pitch screeching in his ears worse. "Make it stop...make it stop...make it stop...."
Yeosang continued to repeat those words as he rocked in Seonghwa's arms. The older didn't know what to do, he was clueless. He didn't know how to help Yeosang, but he so badly wished he could. It was clear he was in too much pain to handle, and he hated seeing it. All he could do was keep his arms tight around Yeosang and hope it would end soon.
"I'm here for you." Seonghwa said, but at this point he didn't even know if Yeosang could hear him.
Whoever was pulling this trick, they'd see their end the second Seonghwa can get his hands on them. He never thought someone could stoop this low to use this against Yeosang. But then again...were who they up against even know about this? That shouldn't be possible. No one knew about Yeosang's condition except the crew, and of course the doctor that treated him, but that person swore to secrecy over the matter.
"What if...it's not a targeted attack at Yeosang, but an attack on all of us." Seonghwa mused aloud, eyes searching around the dark room for any kind of movement. "If it's a frequency messing with his hearing aids....maybe it's a frequency that's actually meant to mess up radios or mics."
That realization sent a cold chill up Seonghwa's spine, now knowing Yunho and Hongjoong couldn't see into what was happening at the estate. They were just as blind as them.
A soft thud had Seonghwa turning his head so fast it couldn't gone flying off. His red eyes scanned through the darkness, looking for the source of the noise. But then Seonghwa smelled something unsettling.
Eyes widening, Seonghwa looked back down at Yeosang, who was most certainly going to be unable to defend himself. They had to abandon ship, and Seonghwa would have to ensure their safety.
The smell of gasoline seeped through the room, making his and Yeosang's heads go fuzzy.
They would really burn their own building? For what? What are they hiding here that's so important?
Or are they really that desperate for our deaths?
"Yeosang, we have to move." Seonghwa removed his hands from around the mentioned's arms, instead cupping his face and lifting it. That look of panic in Yeosang's eyes was unsettling. He didn't hear me.
Quickly, Seonghwa reached forward and with his hand, searched through Yeosang's bag trying to find anything that could help him. Pulling out a small flashlight, Seonghwa clicked it on, the batteries being weak so he had to hit the base a few times to ensure it would stay on. He shinned it around the room first and foremost, seeing that there was a knocked over gas canister, gasoline seeping into the wood, nearing them slowly but surely.
Don't panic.
Seonghwa shinned the light on himself, repeating the words so Yeosang could read his lips. He didn't know if Yeosang somehow completely lost his hearing in those minutes, or if the insanity of whatever he just went through, is still going through, sent him into shock.
Yeah...that look could've been out of shock. He could've still heard me.
Almost unnoticeably, Yeosang nodded his head to what Seonghwa said.
The older took the lead, standing up, hoisting Yeosang up behind him. He ensured the younger was holding onto him, then made his way over to the window opposite of the seeping gasoline, pulling the black-out curtain away from the glass. Once again Seonghwa went quickly searching through Yeosang's bag, finding the laser pointer he had used earlier. He ensured the light was switched to red, then pointed it in the direction the van should've been in. Seonghwa's heart dropped seeing a blur go towards the building to his left, the one where all the gunshots were coming from. Whatever was happening, Yunho just enforced his role as backup for Jongho and Mingi. Then from the shadows Seonghwa noticed another figure emerge. It was their captain, who was doing the same in making his way towards them.
"Bye, bye, bloodsuckers."
Seonghwa turned around as fast as he could after hearing the eerie words, still looking through the darkness. Then a light came into the room. A match was struck. Another object being thrown in beside it.
"No!"
Seonghwa screamed but it was too late. A scorching fire came to life, an explosion blowing out all the glass in the room, burning everything in its path. Including the vampires.
Without a sound, San glared ahead at the rest of the table, revealing his cards which showed the best possible hand to have. It had the others in an immediate ruckus, all sportsmanship showed before either being faked, or just thrown out the door.
"This shouldn't count, you must've cheated!" The other hunter in the room called out, glaring into San's soul.
"Oh please, don't act so high and mighty." San remarked, jaw clenched as he leaned forward. "Just accept how the cards were dealt."
"I'll call bull on that." Sangwook added, defending his fellow hunter, which had Wooyoung scoffing, all attention going on him.
"Says you who has been cheating all fucking night." Wooyoung stated, glaring at Sangwook with a look he knew for a fact he never had the guts to show before. Here and now was a different story. "Oh don't act all surprised. You shouldn't teach people what to look for if you don't want to get caught."
"Why you—"
There was a loud explosion that cut off Sangwook's annoying voice. The building shook momentarily, San and Wooyoung looking to one another with wide eyes.
"What was—"
The old man to Wooyoung's right started speaking, but a gunshot stopped him from speaking any further. Wooyoung froze from fear, shaking slightly as a dead man was now beside him. Forcing his eyes ahead, smoke emerged from the gun Sangwook just fired.
"I swear that man was so annoying." Sangwook didn't seem to have any care in the world for killing a human, his attention immediately turning to San and Wooyoung. As his head tilted to the side, he put away his gun, yet it was in a manner that he could easily access it again. "Now...what to do about the vampire...and vampire lover?"
"Leave him out of this." Wooyoung snapped, hands slamming down on the table as he stood with enough force that caused his chair to fall backwards. His eyes began glowing their signature purple as he glared at Sangwook, who merely laughed devilishly.
"Leave the vampire out of this?" Sangwook asked tauntingly, slowly standing from his chair as well. "I believe the vampire is the cause of all of this."
"As if." Wooyoung said, head shaking to the side once in a sharp movement. "He has nothing to do with this."
Sangwook scoffed, leaning forward against the table, hands flat against the surface. "Did you forget what you are again sweetheart? You're a—"
"I said stop with the fucking nicknames!" Wooyoung raised his voice, his hand unconsciously going to his gun, drawing it and pointing it at the fucker on the opposite side of the table. His hand shook out of anger and adrenaline, but his aim remained locked in one place.
Triggering a domino effect, the human pulled out his gun, pointing it at Wooyoung, causing San to draw his, pointing it at the human, and finally the other hunter pulled his gun, aiming it at San. Everyone was now on their feet. The only one remaining without any weapon out being Sangwook, whose features remained disgustingly cocky.
"I think this is the first time I've seen you willingly hold a weapon." Sangwook stated, tone not falling in either direction, remaining low and hard to read. "What? Did you have to mingle with vampires to build the guts to kill them."
"I want you to shut your mouth right now and stop talking to me like you know me." Wooyoung growled, purple eyes narrowing to a meaner glare. Holding this gun in his hand didn't scare him like he thought it would. Aiming it at that fucker almost felt empowering in the most sickening way.
"Someone forgot their place." Sangwook's entire expression dropped, somehow even more unnerving now that he showed no emotion.
"Someone forgot I ran away from your ass." Wooyoung mimicked the other hunter, the purple in his eyes darkening. "I don't have a place on your side."
Suddenly a flash went across the table. Wooyoung took a step back, confused what happened until he heard the sound of a struggle. He looked to his right, where he noticed San now holding the unknown hunter in a headlock, gun stored away being replaced by one of his larger knives. The hunter struggled, clawing at the vampires arms and kicking at the ground, looking for any kind of help. The human turned to Sangwook, faltering completely.
"Take care of the vampire." Sangwook stated monotonously, eyes not leaving Wooyoung. "I'll take care of this traitor."
Wooyoung's guard was down, his heart pounding so hard he heard it in within his ears. The door opened and revealed an uncountable number of hunters with weapons drawn, all taking to Sangwook's order of going after San. Amongst the unnerving purple eyes, Wooyoung felt confusion make its way at him when he noticed a couple pair of eyes glowing an unnatural green.
His attention snapped back when he noticed movement out of the corner of his eye, Sangwook rounding the table at a slow, but strong pace. He still held no kind of weapon, head tilted to the side just enough to come off creepy.
Wooyoung knew he couldn't focus on San, not when he had to defend himself. And with the way Sangwook approached, it forced Wooyoung's back to all the action, as if on purpose just to torment him even more. It felt like torture, hearing the sounds of fighting behind him, knowing every single person was against San.
He froze when numerous gunshots went off at once, hands shaking even more than before.
"How the hell does a vampire have more respect from you than a fellow hunter?" Sangwook questioned with a scoff, noticing the way Wooyoung acted, how it was so different to anything he's ever seen before.
"Maybe because for once in my life it's because I get treated like an actual person instead of some object to use, destroy, and throw away." Wooyoung spat, shaking his head to try and get himself to focus solely on the person before him. This was all he had to do, then he could help San.
It became more and more difficult though. He recognized the sound of San's struggle, only hearing more and more footsteps, gunshots, and death.
"Really?" Sangwook's head tilted forward slightly, taking confident steps forward. "A vampire? Treating you well? I treated you better than any vampire cou—"
Another gunshot went off, Wooyoung's eyes widening as he realized what he did. He pulled the trigger, but the bullet merely flew past Sangwook, shattering a vase behind him.
That single gunshot changed something in him.
"Don't think so highly of yourself." Wooyoung lowered his voice even more, trying to keep his mind under wraps.
Sangwook scoffed, almost laughed. He turned to look at the shattered vase, looking back arrogantly.
"Pathetic as always." Sangwook mocked, making a tutting sound as he moved to take a few more steps forward.
Except as he turned back, the unexpected happened. Wooyoung's eyes burned with an intense flame, showing the darkest of purple they've ever been able to become. He held his knife, launching himself forward at the fasted speed he could manage, knocking Sangwook back against the wall and held him there, knife to his throat.
Despite the attack Sangwook didn't seem the least bit scared, still as cocky, just slightly flustered, though that went away fast. He looked down at Wooyoung almost nonchalantly, as Wooyoung glared straight through his soul.
"Really?" Sangwook laughed, trying to push Wooyoung off, but found great difficulty. Wooyoung was much stronger now, not struggling in the slightest even with this fuckers resistance.
Now the fear struck.
"Yeah, really." Wooyoung muttered, pressing the knife deeper against his neck, his knee pressing painfully into Sangwook's thigh to ensure he stayed right where he wanted him. "Perhaps you're too caught up in yourself to realize, but I'm not the same person you once knew."
Sangwook scoffed in Wooyoung's face, for a moment his eyes trailed to the mess happening in the other half of the room. Wooyoung stopped that though by pulling away his knife, jabbing it into his shoulder. As Sangwook hunched over in pain, Wooyoung smirked. He pulled the knife out, blood running down the douchebags expensive clothes.
A sick laugh came from Sangwook. "This is all just for show you brat. You don't have it in you to kill."
"Say's who?" Wooyoung questioned, his smirk forming a small, psychotic smile.
Before Sangwook had any time to react, Wooyoung backed away just enough to create the space he needed, stabbing his knife deep into Sangwook's heart. Wooyoung stared into those deceitful purple eyes, taking satisfaction in the way they looked at him in fear and shock.
"You know Sangwook, you really took so much from me you fucker." Wooyoung whispered, that name like hellfire in his mouth, but the burn was worth what it brought him in the end. "My first crush...first date...first kiss...hell, first love, amongst so many others." Wooyoung paused, drawing back his knife only to embed it again in a different area. "I regret letting you ever use me like you did, all those days wasted staying by your side. But not anymore. There's one thing I'll never regret about you." Wooyoung leaned in pressing his knife in deeper, the blood oozing from the weapon onto his hand. "My first kill."
With a sharp movement Wooyoung pulled out the knife, backing away to allow Sangwook's body fall to the ground. Wooyoung let out a shaky breath of air, what felt like hundreds of pounds being released from his shoulders. His purple eyes glowed that deep purple, watching with a sickening satisfaction as the life drained from his ex's eyes. Even in death, Sangwook's eyes remained that disgusting shade of purple that lured many under his power, at some point, Wooyoung included.
Looking at the corpse of his ex, Wooyoung realized he didn't feel any guilt or remorse. But something else shifted within him. The hunter within him began to crawl out of the depths Wooyoung forced it into.
Snapping from his dark thoughts, he turned around when he heard a loud, sharp sound of pain. His heart continued to hammer against his chest, an uncontrollable rage bubbling over when he saw that San was still outnumbered. Then his heart broke when he truly looked at the situation his boyfriend was in. He couldn't tell what his injuries were, but San was on the ground, hand holding over an open, profusely bleeding wound on his side. There were other blood splotches as well, insinuating he got shot or stabbed in other places.
Wooyoung didn't know what happened, how San was overpowered like this. It was just the terrible reminder that they weren't invincible. Just because they were lucky in the past, doesn't mean they would always be lucky.
San's face winced in pain, his feet pushing against the ground as he tried everything in his remaining power to back away from the hunters that looked at him. The hunters that took pleasure in his pain. He couldn't even process that there weren't just purple eyes looking down on him.
Suddenly, he felt the need to look to his left, where he realized Wooyoung was looking at him. He swallowed heavily, wiping the blood off of his already bruising face, only to leave a red smear behind. He got his reason to fight again, but just as he was about to get up another gunshot rang out.
The rage bubbled over in Wooyoung.
These fucking hunters won't even go for the kill, they're just torturing him. And for what? Joy? Pleasure? It's so sick, no wonder these people are associated with that fucker.
As Wooyoung took rash steps forward, he wiped his knife against his pants, cleaning it of the blood that stained it. An action he's seen San do plenty of times, unconsciously making him do the same.
"Wooyoung! No, run! Get out of here." San called out, only holding his side tighter as the pain worsened when he spoke.
Except Wooyoung didn't hear this, or at least he didn't pay attention to it. His goal was set, and there was no stopping him now. Or rather, there was no stopping the monster that lived deep within him.
His steps turned into a run, and with no attention on him, he easily jumped onto the back of the hunter closest to him. The man stumbled around, trying to fight off this sudden attack, except he wasn't successful in the slightest. Wooyoung reached around without any hesitancy, using his strength to embed his knife into the man's heart. His eyes darkened as more blood was spilled.
The hunter fell to the ground, Wooyoung recovering and immediately moving to his next target. Except now the attention was on him so it wouldn't be as easy. Now these hunters, and strange humans with green eyes, were focused on him. Wooyoung killed their leader, so of course they would seek revenge.
Bullets flew through the air, yet none hit their mark. Wooyoung dodged where he thought he could, only being skimmed once by a bullet that flew too close to his arm. It merely tore his jacket, nothing more. He launched himself at the next closest person, slicing at them as they dodged backwards.
Having to still dodge the others, Wooyoung pushed himself to run forward, grabbing the man and spinning him around, using his body as a human shield, protecting himself and San, who was now behind him. And Wooyoung was glad he thought to do this, as the hunters fellow allies were the ones to kill him.
Pulling out his own gun, Wooyoung fired out shots at the remaining people, other gunshots snapping through the air at the same time, both from the enemies in a last attempt at doing what they thought was justified, and San who used his last bit of energy ensuring that Wooyoung would be safe.
The bodies all dropped to the ground, one by one. The room reeked of blood, gunpowder, and death. Wooyoung's chest rose and fall, knuckles white around the gun still tightly held in his hand.
There was a gentle tug at his arm.
Wooyoung didn't know what overcame him, but instinctively, in that moment, he spun around to face where the tug came from, pointing his gun in the process.
For the first time, San looked at Wooyoung with genuine fear in his eyes.
This was not his Wooyoung, not his sunshine, but merely a shell. The purple in his eyes that he loved so deeply wasn't present, instead being replaced by the purple that marked a monster that's been waiting to be released from its cage. Wooyoung's hands shook as he held the gun, it taking an uncomfortable amount of time for him to come to his senses.
Tears brimmed Wooyoung's eyes as he looked over his shoulder, the aftermath of what he caused settling in. He felt uncomfortable over the fact that even for these random corpses, he didn't feel any guilt or remorse for causing their death. He let out a shaky breath, returning his vision to San, clicking the safety back onto his gun before shoving it in its place at his hip.
He fell to the ground, immediately trying to take in San's condition. Overwhelmed by so many thoughts and emotions, it was hard to see straight, let alone think straight.
"I'm so sorry." Wooyoung let out in a soft breath, trying to force the tears in his eyes to go away without crying in the process. "San, I'm so sorry."
"Shh." San tried shushing him gently, but it turned into him coughing, spitting up blood in the process.
"Shit. It's bad." Wooyoung forced his hands to remain relaxed, his anger to be kept contained. Gently, Wooyoung traced over a few different areas, pushing back pieces of fabric to see how bad each wound was.
My god...how are you still alive?
"It is." San breathed out, head leaning back against the wall as some form of stability. He reached out for Wooyoung's hand, holding it tight.
Wooyoung looked down for a moment, trying to think how he could get San out of here in this condition. Everything lead to a dead end though.
"We need backup." Wooyoung muttered, frantically searching himself for his phone with his free hand.
"It's no use." San tugged gently at the hand he was holding, trying to look into Wooyoung's eyes again, watching them slowly shift to their normal purple. "Whatever that explosion was earlier likely drew Hongjoong and Yunho out of the van. I think if you hold onto me I can walk."
"But if we get attacked again then it'll just be worse." Wooyoung shook his head, many thoughts swarming through his confused, messed up mind. "We're sitting ducks here though."
Then an idea stuck him.
San couldn't drink anyone's blood here, all of these hunters, and quite frankly humans, had the possibility of injecting themselves with that poison that could potentially kill San if he ingested it. But it was clear he needed blood, that's how he could recover at least enough to get out of the building.
"You need to take my blood." Wooyoung breathed out, lifting his head so he and San locked eyes. His desperate ones looked into San's wide, yet foggy ones.
Slowly, San shook his head. "No...no! Wooyoung, no, I promised to never take your blood."
Wooyoung showed a sad smile, wiping his less-bloodied hand against his pants, ensuring that there wasn't anything left behind. What very little stained his hand wouldn't be able to do anything to San. He took in a long, shallow breath, forcing his right hand from San's so he could pull his knife from its sheath.
"But you aren't taking my blood." Wooyoung's smile grew, trying to be reassuring. His features formed a wince as he sliced the palm of his hand open. "I'm giving it to you."
Not allowing San to put up any sort of complaint, Wooyoung sat forward, pressing his bleeding hand against the lower half of his boyfriend's face. The looks they gave one another was intense, red and purple eyes illuminating each others faces. San didn't have the strength to fight, and he could no longer resist the taste and smell of blood right before him.
It may of been uncomfortable, but San began licking away at the wound Wooyoung created. He took in the taste of his lovers blood, eyes shutting after a few seconds. Wooyoung continued watching his boyfriend, unable to look away. He suddenly jumped when his hand was entrapped in the cold of San's hand, the vampire holding Wooyoung's hand down against his mouth.
Yet this didn't worry Wooyoung. He knew, deep down, he could get San to stop at any moment if need be. He just needed to make sure San could get what he needed and feel better as soon as possible, even if it was just a little bit.
A minute passed by, turning into two. Wooyoung got more anxious, looking over his shoulder as he thought he heard some kind of commotion happening. As some weird twist of fate, there was another large rumble that caused the room to shake. It wasn't clear what caused it, but no matter what it was, it wasn't good.
San let go of Wooyoung's hand, his head pressing back into the wall. Wooyoung's attention returned to him, first looking down at his own hand, where merely a faded scar remained across his palm. It didn't even look like he just sliced through the skin, San's vampire saliva working odd wonders at healing him.
"Did that help?" Wooyoung asked, sounding slightly frantic, overlooking his boyfriend's body. "Do you feel any better?"
"Drinking blood won't close the wounds, but I have more strength than before." San explained, trying to sit up. Except he paused as he entered Wooyoung's bubble, their eyes locking. "You played a dangerous game Wooyoung."
"I know." Wooyoung replied in a breath, smiling just a little. "But it needed to be done. And it worked out."
San hummed in response. With Wooyoung's help, the vampire was back on his two feet, wobbling slightly. They took a look around the room, getting ready to leave before Wooyoung stopped in his tracks. Quickly, he turned around, rushing towards the table, collecting the strange box that was technically their prize in the end.
Before he returned to San, he took one last look at his ex's dead body. His features remained emotionless, heart still pounding. Tearing his eyes away, he rushed back to San's side.
"We have a lot to talk about after." San said, almost as if he was speaking his thoughts. His red eyes gazed on Wooyoung with a look of concern amongst many other emotions.
"Yeah, but we can't focus on that now." Wooyoung wrapped his left arm around San, supporting the vampire for now. If a situation got too dangerous, San could support himself, but it was better to save his energy for now.
Even at the slow pace they moved, it was as fast as they could currently manage. Stepping out through the open door into the hallway, Wooyoung pulled his gun out again, holding it tight in his right hand. The movement was unconscious, the weight of the deadly weapon bringing him odd comfort.
He couldn't dwell on it, but some part of him didn't like it. Even worse, another part of him did.
Looking either way in unison, the hallways were eerily quiet. They weren't entirely complaining, using their chance to get out of the building without anyone trying to stop them. San audibly winced and had to take a few seconds to recompose himself as he walked down this stairs, his hand still wrapped around his middle, pressed against his worst wound.
Something wasn't right, and they were quick to realize what had happened while their battle was going on. Stepping outside, Wooyoung and San both felt their hearts drop as the night air was illuminated by large flames and smothering smoke. The entire central building was up in flames, rubble and debris everywhere they looked.
"Get back to the van." San forced out, trying to get Wooyoung to move before he even finished speaking. "These cars might explode if the fire gets too close."
"Right." Wooyoung breathed out, forcing his watering eyes away from the structure.
Screams of agony and anger filled the air, fire crackling and gunshots rang out. This indeed turned out to be a whole lot bigger than any of them could've anticipated. Who knew when the flames would be spotted and people would be sent to help. Or what the survivors, if any, would do once they figure out who infiltrated their base. Or even their allies, again if any, would do once they figure out what happened here to begin with.
San separated himself from Wooyoung once they exited the main premises. Wooyoung stayed behind just a few steps, watching his boyfriend to ensure he would be okay. While he stumbled just slightly, he was able to remain upright on his own feet, and even pick up his speed once their van was in sight.
Throwing the side door open, San stepped in with one foot, leaning inside to see if anyone was here. He found nothing, causing him to turn around immediately and stare into the estate with a sense of panic. He didn't know where anyone was, and his hearing was being thrown off by the flames since he couldn't get himself not to focus on all the snaps and crackling it caused, overpowering anything else at that distance.
Wooyoung jogged, approaching to put a hand on San's shoulder, also turning to look at the flames.
"It's okay, the others have to be coming out soon." Wooyoung said weakly, trying to convince himself of the words he just said as well. But it wasn't easy, not when another burst of flames grew from the building, sending more debris and rubble flying through the air.
"Hey!" A familiar voice called out, Wooyoung and San both turning their gaze from the flame to the ground level.
Wooyoung felt his heart continue to pound in his chest, his feet carrying him forward before he could even entirely process his movements. It was Yunho who called out, struggling to hold up Mingi on one side, Jongho on the other. They all bore some kind of injury, Mingi's head hanging low, presumably unconscious. Jongho struggled along with a heavy limp, Wooyoung rushing to his side, pulling his arm over his shoulders so he was now the one supporting the vampire back to the van.
"We were heavily outnumbered." Yunho explained, shifting Mingi's weight so he could hold his lover more comfortably. "And it was so strange, because I swore I was seeing green eyes instead of purple. I don't know if the lighting was doing something or—"
"We saw green eyes too." Wooyoung interrupted, looking from Jongho, to Yunho, then to San who leaned against the van obviously needing support again. "Now's not the time to throw out theories though. We need to get out of here as soon as the others are back."
Jongho didn't want to get in the van, instead leaning against it beside San, onlooking the burning estate like the rest of them. For some reason, Yunho didn't get in the van either, waiting around outside of it, still holding Mingi upright. The younger seemed to be waking up as his head moved to the side a couple of times in a twitching motion.
Wooyoung didn't know what to do, all he could do was turn back and watch, hoping to see familiar faces. He stood with his back to everyone else, knowing that he couldn't look at them right now, not with his mind racing like it was. That didn't stop him from hearing the small sounds and complaints of pain, gravel and dirt shifting under their shoes, and most prominently was the fire that continued to grow.
Then a figure formed in his line of sight. Wooyoung stood on guard, gun still in his hand, only putting those worries aside when the figure got noticeably closer. Everyone was holding their breath.
Seonghwa was forcing himself to walk onward, clothes tatters beyond belief, skin scorched in some areas, bloodied in others. A cut ran across his head, blood dripping down the side of his face. In his weak arms he held Yeosang in a bridal manner, the youngers head hanging back in an unnerving way. Yeosang looked even worse than Seonghwa in terms of burns and other injuries.
As he got closer, Seonghwa fell to his knees just outside of the van. Tears streaked down his face as he held Yeosang's head close to his chest. Seonghwa's hands visibly shook, his sobs remaining quiet almost like he was trying to not show such emotion. Wooyoung found himself crouching on the ground beside Seonghwa, a hand on the older's back, while he looked at the unconscious vampire. It was then he noticed the blood streaks that poured from Yeosang's ears.
No one could speak about the matter, but it laid heavily on all of their hearts.
"Where's Hongjoong?" San asked, stepping away from the van, his hand now resting at his side, no longer holding his wound despite the pain he was in.
"I...I don't know." Seonghwa couldn't lift his head as he answered, his red eyes, filled with tears, unable to look away from Yeosang. "He helped get us out, but I don't know what happened to him. I thought he was following me."
San looked from Seonghwa to the burning building, taking a few more steps forward. Wooyoung immediately shot up, reaching out and grabbing San's arm. The two looked at one another, red and purple eyes having an intense, wordless conversation. With a sudden, sharp movement, San freed himself from Wooyoung's hold.
"San!" Wooyoung screamed out, turning to watch his boyfriend push himself, running back into the estate at the fastest speed he could muster.
Wooyoung tried to go after him, but found himself trapped in a cold hold. He screamed out for San again, tears running down his face at an uncontrollable rate, all of the high emotions releasing through this way. He couldn't fight whoever was holding him, but when he felt himself go limp, he was slowly lowered to the ground.
Wooyoung sat on his knees, still being held, sobbing as he watched the flames continue to grow. His heart hurt as it pounded uncontrollably, breath stuttering as he inhaled and exhaled the smokey air, hands shaking from everything he was feeling.
Hearing a sniffle right behind him inclined Wooyoung to turn his head, where he finally got a face to who held him back. Despite being hurt, Jongho was the one that held him, ensuring that Wooyoung wouldn't be as reckless as San. Neither could say anything, not that they could.
Another explosion fueled the fire, the vampires and hunter all flinching and instinctively trying to shield their faces. Wooyoung felt his heart drop, suddenly his body going an unnerving cold. He couldn't cry anymore, just staring almost lifelessly at the building. For just a moment he looked around at the others, seeing how broken they all were.
I didn't think you meant that literally San.
I didn't realize you'd actually follow Hongjoong into a burning building.
You better come out of there alive.
You can't leave me like this.
Please.
You promised you'd protect me and stay with me.
Wooyoung's head fell back, hitting Jongho's shoulder, where it remained as the silent tears continued pouring down his expressionless face. Seonghwa held Yeosang even tighter to his chest when the younger's breathing faltered, heartbeat becoming weaker. Tears was an understatement to what Seonghwa portrayed now that the attention wasn't on him. Yunho lifted Mingi's head with a delicate hand, searching for his lovers eyes, which he found, but they were lost and confused. Yunho concluded Mingi had a concussion, but that didn't stop him from pulling him into the strongest of hugs, sobbing into his neck. He was scared he lost him.
Blurred vision, Wooyoung couldn't wipe away his tears, only blinking them away, hoping for his vision to clear. Those were the longest and possibly the worst minutes of Wooyoung's life. Each second felt like an eternity that allowed doubt to fester. His chest rose and fell more consistently than before, breathing through his mouth since he no longer could breathe from his nose.
"Come on." Jongho muttered weakly, sounding completely broken. He tried to get Wooyoung to stand up again, meeting resistance. "Wooyoung, stop. We—"
"No!" Wooyoung screamed, fighting out of Jongho's arms and somehow succeeding. When he spun around, backing away on the rough gravel, he realized that Jongho's condition worsened, sitting on the ground not helping his leg in the slightest. He felt guilty rise at him for yelling that way, and possibly hurting his friend even more. He lowered his head, not fighting the tears that fell off his face. "We can't give up on them."
"I'm not saying we're giving up on them." Jongho tried to reason, explain himself, sounding more defeated than before. "But we can't just sit out here in the open."
Wooyoung unclenched his fists that he didn't even realize formed, nodding his head. It made sense, they were still in enemy territory, still in extreme danger. Looking over at the others, it processed that he was somehow the only one not hurt, physically at least. He needed to be the one to step up and help when it matters the most.
Brushing himself off, Wooyoung kept his back to the fire, knowing he'd be lost again the second he looked at it. He could only hope to not hear anything worse, and for San and Hongjoong to be okay. Breathing heavily, Wooyoung tried to figure out the best way to go about this, his thoughts messy and hardly coherent.
"Yunho...." Wooyoung called out, his voice barely raising, trailing off with uncertainty. The mentioned lifted his head, not moving out of his hug, but at least acknowledged he was listening. "You can drive, right?"
Without saying a word, Yunho nodded his head. He as well realized that despite his own injuries, he was in the second best condition. Stepping away, Yunho held Mingi's shoulders tight, unable to show a reassuring smile despite trying.
"Yes, I can drive." Yunho said, his voice slightly hoarse. "Let me get Mingi in the passenger seat, you can start loading the others in the back."
Wooyoung admired the fact that Yunho still had some sense of control over the situation. That was what he needed to hear to turn and offer Jongho help into the van. Wooyoung ended up stepping inside first, keeping his vision low, holding out both of his hands for the vampire to take. They both used their strength in order to accomplish the task, Jongho falling into one of the single seats at the very back of the van, beside the screens. Before Wooyoung let go, he gave Jongho's hands a tight squeeze, their eyes locking.
No words needed to be said to know that this was Wooyoung's way of showing thanks in that moment.
The hunter turned again, stepping out of the van and foolishly looking towards the growing fire. He swallowed heavily, heart wavering. Shaking his head, Wooyoung crouched, putting a hand on Seonghwa's back to let the vampire know he was here. Seonghwa had completely zoned out, not moving in the slightest.
"Let's get Yeosang inside." Wooyoung whispered, hoping he wouldn't scare the older.
Seonghwa looked up, eyes returning to their normal color, but were still red from crying. Wooyoung has never seen Seonghwa this lost and broken. His vision lowered, his heart breaking even more after taking in the fact Yeosang was still out cold. Gently, Wooyoung put an arm behind Yeosang's neck, the other behind his knees. He didn't know if Seonghwa had the strength to carry Yeosang anymore, so he thought doing this, they could both carry Yeosang into the van.
Seonghwa seemed to of gotten the message, standing on wobbly legs. He relied on Wooyoung to guide them, his vision locked on Yeosang again. There were many things he felt, but the most prominent was heartbreak. True, genuine heartbreak he had never felt before. Guilt was eating away at him as well.
Wooyoung wasn't even sure if Seonghwa had truly processed that Hongjoong wasn't with them. But he didn't feel like it was necessarily for the older to realize that. He had enough on his plate.
Together, they put Yeosang down on one of the benches, laying him down flat on the surface that was just big enough to hold his body. Seonghwa refused to sit on the other bench just across the way, sitting down in the small walk space that make his injuries hurt even more. It didn't matter in his eyes, he stayed put, holding one of Yeosang's hands with both of his bloodied own, eyes remaining on the youngers battered face. He tried everything to ignore the feeling of blood on his hands, knowing it all belonged to Yeosang, focusing just on the physical contact instead.
Again, Wooyoung exited the van, now having nothing else to do but stare at the fire. He jumped when he heard a car door slam shut, tearing his gaze away to his right, realizing Yunho closed the drivers side door. The taller crossed his arms, also looking at the fire.
"Come on guys." Yunho said under his breath, growing more and more uneasy. His foot tapped against the ground, anxiety wearing off on Wooyoung.
Then, as the hunter looked back at the fire, a figure formed through the flames. His vision adjusted, realizing it was two figures, holding each other up by arms slung over the others shoulders, stumbling through what little wasn't engulfed in flames by this point.
Both Wooyoung and Yunho let out shaky breaths of relief, rushing forward and unmatched speeds to help. Somehow, Wooyoung kept up with Yunho, eyes glowing their vibrant purple amongst the burning red. He thought he had cried all of his tears, but they only fell harder from his eyes the second he had San leaning against him.
"Don't you ever do something like that again!" Wooyoung sobbed, unable to look away from his boyfriend's features twisted in pain.
San merely let out a dry, pained laugh, a weak smile forming as he found Wooyoung's gaze. "I'm sorry sunshine."
Wooyoung didn't know what to do with that, but he couldn't process it now. A four heads ducked low as another loud bang happened behind them seemingly never ending. All turning in unison, the fire continued to burn, but now the main building no longer stood.
"We need to get out of here." Yunho breathed out, coughing and waving his free hand in front of his face.
Wooyoung and San stepped into the van first, sitting on the free bench side by side. Wooyoung clung to San, hiding his face in his ash covered clothes. San pushed the pain to the back of his mind, allowing Wooyoung to cling to him like this, wrapping both of his arms around him as well. He needed to be as close as physically possible.
The second Yunho tried helping Hongjoong into the van the taller let out a loud curse, catching his leader before he could fall. Something else fell from the captains hands, landing with a soft thud within the van, yet was completely discarded. "Hongjoong just passed out. He probably took in too much smoke."
"Where was he?" Jongho snapped out of his shock at seeing the last two arrivals, looking between San, Yunho, and Hongjoong.
"I found him on the second story." San explained with a hoarse voice, head lolling backwards to rest against the van wall, tilted to the side just enough for him to feel Wooyoung's hair. "A beam or something fell and kept him trapped. It was hard to entirely make out, I don't know, I don't really even have the strength to think right now."
Wooyoung let out another choked sob, hugging San tighter.
Yunho got Hongjoong situated in the remaining space on the bench the other couple sat on, this one being longer and taking up almost that entire side of the van. He laid Hongjoong down so that his head was closer to Jongho, since he would likely be the one to pay the most attention to their captain right now.
Stepping out of the van, Yunho took a final look at their broken crew. It had never been this bad before, and with their captain down for the count, he was feeling a bit lost. They were so far from home, it wouldn't make sense to drive straight there, not when someone could die on the trip back. Closing the sliding door, Yunho thought as he got into the drivers seat. He didn't know of anyone to rely on around here, and they couldn't just go to a hospital, that was a death wish.
The van came to life at the turn of a key, the doors locking as Yunho drummed his fingers against the steering wheel. He leaned forward hitting his head against the top half of the steering wheel, eyes shutting as he tried to search for any kind of answer. No one's personal housing was anywhere nearby, nor did he think that anyone else had any favors that could be called in around here. They were completely in the dark for what felt like the first time ever. It was unsettling.
Everything was catching up to each and every one of those that remained conscious.
"Give me the GPS." Seonghwa spoke with a raspy voice, his eyes finding the back of Yunho's head, then Mingi's gaze.
Mingi was the one to reach forward, ripping the GPS from where it rested, handing it back to Seonghwa. As the older typed something in, Mingi reached out and put a hand on Yunho's mid-back, too hesitant to touch any higher since his shirt was stained red and ripped near that area.
"Go to that address." Seonghwa muttered, handing the device back to Mingi, who set it up again properly.
"Where is this?" Yunho asked, already speeding off into the night before he even got a proper answer.
"It's my families property." Seonghwa answered even quieter than before, a distant look in his eyes. "As much as I'd rather not go there, that's our best option right now."