While Seonghwa helped Hongjoong to his feet, the clergy was ushered outside for being too agitated in the neutral house of the law. The judge remained and a few courier boys hastened about, quick to bring the message to those who mattered before the entire fortress would sink into chaos and murder Seonghwa in his sleep. The church would spread the word quickly to unite the people and the soldiers against their sinful commodore, so it was wisest to get out of here as smartly as Hongjoong's leg could move.
But where to? They were nothing now. Seonghwa had no title and Hongjoong couldn't go back to the sea unless he wanted to demolish everything Seonghwa had done for him.
More than ever, Hongjoong wanted to protest and demand them to let him hang and reinstall Seonghwa into his honourable position, but he had no power here. Seonghwa ruled this place. He abused his power and position for the first and last time.
The governor of this area came striding in among the mayhem and joined with the judge. After a hasty exchange, he hastened to Seonghwa's side. Didn't understand why he was looking at a grimy pirate in the supportive arm of his best soldier.
"Are you sure about this, Seonghwa? You know what this means?" His hand patted Seonghwa's shoulder, worried about him as if he were his son.
Hongjoong bit his lip. The betrayal gnawed at him as if he was the one going against the people who gifted him with life. With safety and a name.
But Seonghwa knew how the church would treat him once word got out. In the past, he obeyed blindly. But ever since he knew Hongjoong, his heart steered his choices. And he was sick of hiding who he was and whom he loved.
While Hongjoong always wished for him to break free of his shackles, the end of it was appalling. Seonghwa left everything behind. The things Hongjoong always deemed as abusive and holding him back had carried Seonghwa through life.
"Yes, sir. He is that important to me."
The governor wrung his hand over his haggard face. He didn't understand how it could come to this, but he didn't have to. Seonghwa made a request, an unlawful one. And they allowed him because he was capable.
It had been a gamble, but Seonghwa was shrewd. He knew to play his relationships in his favour.
"I will look over this in exchange for your hard work and since this pirate hasn't been dangerous in recent times, but I don't want to see your face ever again, Seonghwa. I will lock you up," the governor also threatened. "The law and the church are no longer by your side."
"Yes, sir," Seonghwa replied immediately. "I will see to this pirate's truce and never demand anything again. Just let us go."
Cowardly, those jack tar. Did whatever they pleased. For once, their corruption came in handy.
Though the governor looked crushed at losing Seonghwa, he nodded. They should have known back then when he was first disciplined for sodomy. What type of man he was.
But no one, not even Hongjoong, thought him foolish enough to lose his heart to a pirate.
"Get out of here. I will take care of matters on my side. From today onwards, you are dead, Park Seonghwa. You and your pirate. Died in a tragic last embrace as you defied the law."
Seonghwa's grin was bright.
"Thank you, sir. I shan't peek from my grave ever again."
The governor let them go and marched off to bribe the church for their silence.
And just like that, everything ended. For Seonghwa, for Hongjoong. Time stood still.
Seonghwa carefully led Hongjoong to the doors, mindful of his injured leg. Not mentioning what he did, as if it were something minor to brush off.
Hongjoong stared at his profile. At his serene peace.
Who was this man?
"Why would ye do that? Did madness befall ye?" Hongjoong whispered. He didn't understand. Seonghwa was at the top. Had anything he ever worked for. No feeling was worth giving up his entire life.
"I didn't lose anything. Everything I wanted to protect is here with me," Seonghwa replied, like some maniac who sweltered under the scorching sun for too long.
"Yer work, Seonghwa. Yer life. Yer love fer the briney deep."
"None of that matters if you aren't there."
They stepped outside. The sun was still so bright and this time, Hongjoong shielded his eyes from it. His hands were free. His legs unbound. He could go wherever he wanted. Could taste the sea again. Emerged alive from the hall that swallowed pirates into darkness without fail.
But the sacrifice for all that had been too great.
When he stared at Seonghwa in silence, he wanted there to be another way. Wanted Seonghwa to go back and ask them for forgiveness and to take him back in. Wanted him to return to his life.
But it was over. No one would trust him anymore. At his stubborn speed, he ruined everything before Hongjoong could stop him.
Seonghwa smiled down at him and swiped the gritty hair from Hongjoong's haunted eyes.
"You would have done the same, Hongjoong. If it were pirates judging upon me. I know you would have."
Would he? Hongjoong didn't know. His heart hammered in his chest.
"What now?" He asked instead. He couldn't think about this. Who were they now? What was left to do if their lives ended here?
Seonghwa sighed, looking into the far skies while the barracks bustled around them. Suddenly, no one cared about Hongjoong anymore. They did their daily business as the world kept spinning.
"We should lie low. They weren't joking; I betrayed the royal crown and abused my position. Perhaps we can find a little hut somewhere and grow our food ourselves. I never thought of a life outside the navy, but I suppose we have to learn."
He was mad. Chuckled to himself as if he was at peace with this. As if he was glad he made this decision.
Hadn't he been so proud of his newest brooch just a week ago? No, Cabezon loved his life as a jack tar. And he threw it away.
Seonghwa continued when Hongjoong stared at him in silence.
"We fought so long on opposite sites I grew sick of it. I'm sorry I had to take your freedom, but this is the only way you could survive. You don't have to be with me. Be free, but be subtle about it. Just make sure you relish this second chance, so I know it was worth it."
"Why?" Hongjoong gagged out against the knot inside his throat. "Why would ye do that? Why would ye-"
"I need you to live," Seonghwa whispered with his eyes cast onto the ground. "I don't care what you do and who you are with. Just live."
Hongjoong felt feverish again. He waned under the sun, and Seonghwa caught him around his waist. The awful melancholy on his features dissipated as he cradled Hongjoong's malnourished body close.
"Come on, let's find an inn for the night so you can rest. We can talk about anything else once you wake up. Everything changed, but we can figure it out. I have money."
Faint, Hongjoong clung to him on their way into the town. No jack tar bothered them anymore. Did the pirates even glance over? Did everyone suddenly forget about them?
Hongjoong was queasy by the time Seonghwa finally brought him into a room and lowered him on the bed. His hand felt Hongjoong's forehead.
"Sleep. And don't fret in your dreams too much." His smile was wistful. Hongjoong wanted him to go back. He would give up being a pirate so Seonghwa could regain his status; yes, he would.
He would.
Hongjoong passed out to his exhaustion and Seonghwa placed some water by his side, guarding the one he gave everything for.
-
Hongjoong awoke at sunset. The orange sun tickled over the blanket Seonghwa had thrown over him. The streets outside bustled with life and the laughter of the late evening. When the pirate shifted, Seonghwa looked up from the book he had been reading at the desk. Two bundles had appeared by his side and some medication awaited Hongjoong on the nightstand. His weapons also found their way here.
So Seonghwa had packed already.
Not overwhelming himself when he just awoke, Hongjoong pulled himself up to lean against the headboard. He gulped down his bitter medicine and silently stared at the blanket afterwards.
So this was it. They had no more duties, no more protection. No more names.
Two dead men with another chance at life.
Where to? What would they do? How could Hongjoong ever repay what Seonghwa sacrificed for him?
Seonghwa sat by his side. His smile was apologetic, as if he had something to be sorry for. Perhaps he did. All this lunacy.
"How do you feel?"
"What be we doin', Cabezon?" Hongjoong asked, too shaken to talk mindlessly. His mind was clear, but terror consumed him. About what they had done. What this meant.
But Seonghwa was patient with him.
"We need to leave town, that much is for certain. I gathered our things, so we could take a ship. Buying our fare, not stealing it." He jested, but Hongjoong couldn't smile. The pirate clutched the blanket, finding no beauty in the sun or the laughter outside.
"I can nay repay ye fer this. Can nay brin' yer life aft. Ye lost everythin' because o' me, 'ow can ye-"
Hurriedly, Seonghwa scooted closer. He grasped Hongjoong's face in his palms and caressed his ears and haggard face.
"Shh, no, you don't understand. It lost all worth in comparison to you. All these brooches and titles and riches. None of them matter to me if you are dead. I care about you most."
Hongjoong's eyes stung. Why did Seonghwa look so sad? As if he did lose something? This past of taunting each other would never come back. Why would he sacrifice everything he ever had?
Ah, that was it.
He wasn't sure if Hongjoong would stay. He dodged his eyes as if worried the pirate condemned him for ending his life of freedom. For forcing him to live because Seonghwa felt for him.
Feeling empty, Hongjoong let his drawn shoulders sink.
How cruel he was. Making Seonghwa go through all this. The church had been right.
They were equally cruel to each other.
"Where will we set course to?" Hongjoong whispered, and Seonghwa glanced up. Hope flashed in his eyes, even when he still looked so pitiful.
"You want to stay with me?" He looked giddy like a child and Hongjoong snorted at him. This grand commodore danced on the noses of thousands of jack tar and church members? If only they knew how nasty he could get towards this specific pirate. How the permanent scowl on his features was a shell that masked wonder and emotion, pain and desire.
Of course, Hongjoong would stay. Why would Seonghwa ever ask? Who did they have, if not each other?
It wasn't guilt. But Hongjoong was still stuttering to understand Seonghwa's decision. Everything happened so quickly, but Seonghwa was right. He once gave up pirating, and this leg would hold him back from more grand adventures.
Was this why Jongho settled down? When a person made him think twice if he would even enjoy himself with his eternal love for the sea? Because his mind would be with his love wherever he went?
Hongjoong wanted to ask him.
"Aye."
Seonghwa hid a grin away to the side. His hair fell softly into his forehead after washing and Hongjoong also wanted to peel his layer of grime off. Get rid of those memories of the prison and them clinging to each other in fear.
"I like the idea of our own little hut. It would be so cosy and dreamy, but let's be at the sea so neither of us will miss it. Shall we search for a new home?" Seonghwa suggested with a dreamy look in his eyes.
No more pillaging and murdering. No more hunting criminals and dancing with death every day.
"Aye, let's find a 'ome," Hongjoong whispered. The words sounded foreign on his lips. He had homes before. His ship was his home. The sea.
But in his idea of home, Seonghwa had never been a permanent fixture. Only ever a visitor.
Things would change now. But Seonghwa looked motivated to tackle this with Hongjoong. Not to dwell on the past they left behind because this meant the law no longer stood between them.
Blimey, they were even married now.
With an abrupt blush, the pirate glanced away. The rustling and whirling in his chest were scary to him. So intense and warm. Did Seonghwa still have that document somewhere?
Seonghwa's grin was bright and crooked, imperfect because the depths of him were. Sides only Hongjoong got to see.
"Let's take it slow until your leg feels better."
This was a new beginning. They were the same people. Harboured the same feelings for each other.
Perhaps things didn't need to change. Perhaps the yearning would finally stop. Hongjoong didn't know yet if he would miss his life, or if Seonghwa would miss his.
But they both had been hesitating for a long time.
Finally, they chose each other.