Chapter Text
Riki woke to warmth.
Not the kind that came from blankets or the old heating system buried somewhere beneath the house. This warmth breathed, shifted, and wrapped around him from every direction until he couldn’t tell where one body ended, and another began.
For one disorienting second, he forgot where he was.
Then someone tightened their arm around his waist.
Riki startled violently, eyes flying open. A sleepy sound answered him from somewhere near his shoulder, followed by fingers dragging lazily across his stomach like they were trying to soothe him without waking fully. The nest was dim, lit only by the pale blue wash of dawn leaking through the curtains. Bodies were sprawled everywhere: tangled together beneath blankets that had long since stopped serving any real purpose.
Jake was practically lying across his legs, one arm hooked stubbornly around Riki’s thigh even in sleep. Sunoo was curled into Riki’s side, cheek pressed against his ribs, one hand fisted loosely in the fabric of his shirt. Across from them, Sunghoon had one arm draped over Jake’s back, his face buried in the blankets. Jay and Heeseung were pressed together near the headboard, though Jay’s hand had somehow found its way across the bed, fingertips barely touching Jungwon’s wrist.
And Jungwon—
Riki’s breath caught.
Jungwon was awake.
Not fully. His eyes were half-lidded, heavy with exhaustion, but they were fixed on Riki with terrifying immediacy, like the moment Riki startled awake, Jungwon had felt it too. Neither of them spoke. Jungwon just stared for a second too long before his gaze dropped to the marks scattered across Riki’s skin.
Riki suddenly became acutely aware of every single one of them.
His neck burned first. Then his wrist. His spine. His chest. His hip. Behind his ear. Each mark pulsed faintly beneath his skin, like a heartbeat separate from his own.
He sucked in a sharp breath, and six heads lifted almost instantly.
The reaction was immediate enough to frighten him. Jake jerked upright first, eyes wide with panic. Sunghoon’s hand was suddenly on the back of his neck. Jay pushed himself up on one elbow. Even Heeseung looked alert immediately, exhaustion evaporating from his face as he scanned Riki for injuries.
“What happened?” Jay asked.
Too many voices. Too much attention. Too fast.
Riki blinked at them, overwhelmed. “Nothing?”
No one relaxed.
Sunoo pressed closer against his side, brows pinched with concern. “Your heart sped up.”
“I’m fine,” Riki said automatically, but the words came out weak beneath the weight of six separate emotions crashing into him all at once. Relief. Fear. Confusion. Anxiety. Exhaustion. Hunger.
It hit him so suddenly, he almost recoiled.
The bond.
Oh.
Oh, this was going to be a problem.
Riki felt nauseous, as if the world were spinning around him and he couldn’t find his footing. He stared at his coven, but his mind traveled elsewhere. Jake clapped his hands over his ears, bending at the waist like he was in pain despite the nest being silent.
“Open channel…” Jake grunted through clenched teeth.
Riki blinked. Heeseung winced, squeezing the back of his neck. Even Jungwon seemed to cringe backward, knocking the heel of his hand lightly against his forehead like he was trying to alleviate a headache.
Sunghoon dug his hands into his eyes, no longer upright, but rather pressed face down into the tangle of sheets. “Why are your thoughts so loud?”
Riki’s stomach turned. He vaguely remembered Sunoo mentioning something about their thoughts being accessible, but he didn’t think it would open immediately. Could he close it? He didn’t know how to close it—what if they hear something he wasn’t ready for them to know—he can’t—
Sunoo slid onto his lap, his warm hands cupping Riki’s face, and everything else fell away. Around him, his coven fell onto each other, the tension of Riki’s spiral fading from their bodies. Sunoo smiled gently, his thumb carefully tracing over the apple of his cheek, down his nose, anywhere he could reach, and Riki reveled in the sparks that followed in his wake.
Sunoo, somehow, looked even more beautiful in the soft morning light. His hair was ruffled, not perfect, but Riki almost preferred it that way. His skin held a faint tint of warmth that came from being surrounded by too much body heat for too long, and his eyes held a certain light to them. A flush of red spread from Sunoo’s cheeks to his chest, and Riki got the absurd urge to bite him.
He heard a snicker followed closely by Jake’s distinct “ow!” before Sunoo cleared his throat.
“Can you do something for me?”
Riki was nodding before he even finished his sentence.
Sunoo’s smile softened. “Close your eyes,” he said. He waited until Riki completed the task. “Can you see the bond?”
Riki was about to retort, but then he saw it. Or maybe he was imagining things. It almost looked like a tunnel, connecting his mind, his body, his heart, his soul, to each one of theirs. It was still gold, pulsing faintly, like a fresh wound beginning to heal.
He felt Sunoo’s thumb brush under his eye, his voice floating back to him. “Picture a wall on your side, block your thoughts from the bond.”
Riki felt himself frowning. He wasn’t quite sure if he was doing it correctly, but he must have done something right because there was a collective sigh of relief that echoed through the nest. When he opened his eyes again, they were all looking at him. Riki’s eyes narrowed, and Sunoo attempted to soothe the dip with his thumb.
He didn’t feel Jungwon until the other vampire was right beside him. An instant calm flooded his system when Jungwon’s chin landed on his shoulder. He leaned into the touch, almost desperate. He felt Jungwon chuckle against the sensitive skin of his throat.
“Good job.”
Riki flushed despite himself, shivering when Jungwon pressed a kiss against his new mark. Sunoo’s hands had begun to drift lower now that Riki was preoccupied with Jungwon, circling the mark Heeseung had left on his sternum. Riki jumped at the shocks they sent down his spine, and he distinctly heard Heeseung let out a pained hiss.
Sunoo laughed, holding his hands up in surrender when Heeseung kicked out a leg, hitting him in the hip. Riki pulled away from Jungwon to retaliate, shifting his weight under Sunoo before the front door cracked open. Riki froze, eyes darting back to Jungwon to see if he happened to know anything about their unannounced guest. Based on Jungwon’s wide eyes, he was just as unaware.
Riki opened his mouth, shifting Sunoo carefully off his lap, but Jungwon held his finger up to his lips. He stood up fluently, already at the door before Riki had any time to blink. Jay’s hand closed over the handle, and Jungwon reared back, like he hadn’t expected anyone to follow him. Sunghoon pulled Riki back against his chest, wrapping his arms protectively around his middle as they watched the silent exchange.
He didn’t know if it was the presence of the bond that made them so easy to read or if it was simply the fact of living with them for such an extended period of time. But Riki could almost hear the argument they were having despite their expressions only shifting slightly.
Jay’s stare hardened, and something like disbelief flooded through the bond. Jungwon didn’t break eye contact, even as the dip between his drawn eyebrows twitched, and Riki knew he was frustrated before the bond told him. But he could also feel the fear underneath; he could see it in Jungwon’s clenched fists and rigid posture.
Eventually, Jay pulled the door open anyway and disappeared down the hall, Jungwon following anxiously behind. Heeseung stood as well. He moved with a calm grace towards the door, only pausing to shoot the four of them a calculated grin. He may have appeared calmer, but his entire energy had shifted. Riki didn’t even have the words. It was like an entirely different person from the Heeseung he knew.
Seconds passed in silence until they all flinched at the sound of a scream. Except there were two, one was distinctly higher, clearly startled, the other was just slightly deeper, but just as startled. All four of them were up before the screams died out.
Hanni and Jungwon stood opposite each other, their eyes wide, and their hearts racing. Heeseung’s posture was relaxed, but the coldness had yet to fade from his eyes. Jay had one arm over Jungwon’s chest, like he’d been preparing to rip him away from a threat.
Riki blinked, taking in the mountain of grocery bags Hanni, presumably, plopped on the counter. He slipped past them, gently untangling himself from the hands that caught at his sleeves and wrist without really thinking. He crossed the room towards Hanni, grabbed a pastry from the top of the pile, and tossed it to Jungwon, who broke out of his stance to catch it.
He crossed one ankle over the other, leaning back against the counter, stealing a blood-bag from Hanni’s stash. “So,” he started, pointedly ignoring the eyes of his coven on him. “What brings you here?”
His coven slowly trickled down, perching themselves on chairs or the table, but their eyes always drifted back towards Riki, like they were displeased with the distance but were constantly checking on him.
Hanni frowned, turning to unpack the monstrous amount of food she’d brought, handing every other item to Riki, who started organizing without complaint.
“I thought you were going to kill me,” Hanni muttered.
Jungwon rolled his eyes, one hand unconsciously on the back of Sunghoon’s neck, his thumb running over his mark. “You broke into our house. I thought you were a threat.”
Hanni raised a single eyebrow. “You gave me a key.”
Jungwon shrugged. “How was I supposed to know you weren’t a stranger who picked the lock?”
Hanni threw an apple at his head. Riki laughed under his breath, still moving to put ice cream in the freezer and fruit in the fridge. Hanni stopped him with a hand on his arm, tipping his head back with her forefinger. Riki let her, baring his neck slightly to show the fresh mark on his neck.
“Watch it.” Heeseung ground out, visibly more tense than he was a second ago.
Hanni’s fingers stopped mere centimeters from Jungwon’s mark, but she didn’t look back at Riki’s coven. Instead, she practically lit up, beaming in a way Riki had yet to see. “Congratulations!”
Riki was unprepared when she threw herself into his arms for an all-consuming hug. Riki looked over her shoulder towards his coven. They were…not taking it well. Jay’s hand balled into a fist at his side, and Sunghoon straightened in his seat. Jake and Sunoo actually stood up, and even Heeseung looked like he was prepared to intervene. Only Jungwon didn’t move. But Riki could see something flash in his eyes, something cold and angry.
Hanni’s grip was tight, and for a brief second, Riki thought she was going to strangle him, but then she let go, pulling back. Her grin was still wide as she wound back to punch him in the arm. Riki yelped, jumping back and clutching his injured arm.
Hanni didn’t seem to notice his coven, who looked prepared to rip Riki away. She turned an unamused look on Jungwon. “...seriously?”
His coven relaxed at once, and Sunoo laughed awkwardly. “We’re…working on it. Sorry.”
Hanni rolled her eyes, and Riki finished putting away some snacks before finally retreating to his coven. He didn’t realize how much his chest had tightened until he was finally close enough to touch again. Jay pulled Riki into his lap, pushing up the sleeve of his shirt to run his fingers over his own mark.
Riki melted back against him, craning his neck when he felt the press of Jay’s lips on his skin. Hanni didn’t seem to notice, really, as she perched on the table next to the chair Jungwon was sitting on. Jungwon’s hand never left Sunghoon’s neck as he talked to her, and Riki could feel Sunghoon’s bliss through the bond. Jake leaned over Sunoo for one of the strawberries Hanni had brought, biting into it before handing the rest to Heeseung. Riki laughed, allowing himself to watch for a few more minutes before detangling himself from Jay.
He walked to the door, only stopping at the deafening silence that filled the kitchen. When he turned, all eyes were on him; his entire coven shifted as if they were also beginning to leave. Hanni looked between them curiously, her eyes shifting from Jungwon’s unwavering gaze to Riki.
“Where are you going?” Jungwon asked.
Riki frowned at the tight feeling in his chest again. “Just to the bathroom.”
Relief flooded the bond instantly, and Riki felt dizzy with it. He blinked through the dots in his vision, blindly finding his way upstairs, but not before he heard Hanni’s,
“What was that?”
***
Jay pulled Jake closer by his chair, propping his head on Jake’s shoulder to hide the odd pain in his chest from Riki leaving. Hanni’s eyes drifted over all of them, her gaze more knowing than Jay would like. She hopped off the table, hands on her hips, staring down at Jungwon disapprovingly.
“What was that?”
Jungwon sighed, slumping forward dramatically. “It’s nothing,” he said, drawing out the words like a petulant child. This side of him was common around Hanni, Jay noticed; she was probably the only other person who saw any other side of Jungwon that wasn’t stoic or serious.
Hanni kicked his chair, mocking his tone. “It’s clearly not nothing.”
“The bond’s new, remember, it’s just a little intense until it settles in, you know how it is.”
Hanni looked at him flatly, flicking a blueberry at his head. “Yeah, I do know how it is, and I also don’t remember my coven practically following me to the bathroom.”
Jungwon said something back, but Jay only caught Hanni’s response. She stared at them with concern, her arms crossed over her chest in the way she only does when she’s anxious. “Why are you all acting like Victorian widows because Riki went to pee?”
Jungwon frowned, and Sunghoon slipped his hand into Jungwon’s, pressing light kisses on his knuckles.
Jay shifted a little closer, sliding onto Jake’s lap, who seemed to appreciate the contact. He could hear Riki moving upstairs, no, he could feel Riki moving. He had already left the bathroom and was moving around the nest, but Jay couldn’t tell what he was doing. He was humming under his breath. Jay recognized it as one of the many songs they’d written in the studio.
Riki was in his own room now, shuffling through what Jay assumed were clothes. Jake tapped his knee twice with two fingers, and Jay turned his attention to him easily. Jake’s lips were parted like he wanted to ask something, but forgot what. His other hand twitched on Jay’s waist before tightening, like he was afraid of someone taking Jay away. Jay frowned, shifting so he was facing Jake as well as he could while still in his lap.
He cupped Jake’s face with both hands and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips. Jake tilted his head up to meet him, his hand sliding up to squeeze the back of Jay’s neck, his lips insistent against Jay’s. Jay pulled away when he felt Jake’s tongue prodding against the seam of his lips. Jake pouted, tugging at Jay’s neck to bring him closer again. Jay resisted, but pressed their foreheads together to appease him, even if just a little.
He could hear Jungwon and Hanni still arguing, going back and forth and back again until Riki walked back in. All heads snapped in his direction, and he froze in the doorway. He was wrapped in one of Jungwon’s sweatshirts. Jay recognized it immediately. It had been Heeseung’s once, until Jungwon quietly stole it years ago and refused to give it back. Riki’s sweatpants were his own, a rarity, and his hair was ruffled from his clothing change.
Jungwon sucked in a sharp breath at the sight of him, his conversation coming to a complete halt. His eyes traveled over the oversized sleeves, and something warm flickered through the bond, satisfaction maybe, but something more to it as well. Jay couldn’t quite decipher everything, but it was enough to make everyone relax. It lasted only a second, maybe less, because then Jungwon remembered that Hanni was watching.
Jay's body had already started moving before he'd decided to. His hand found Riki's wrist almost absently, like something inside him had been counting the inches between them and finally decided enough was enough.
Hanni let out a distressed sound. “See! This is what I mean!”
Riki’s brows drew together, and he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “What’s wrong with me now?”
Jungwon shook his head. “Nothing,” he insisted, glaring at Hanni briefly.
Hanni pursed her lips. Riki didn’t look like he believed Jungwon’s words, his eyes falling to the floor. Jay moved to stand, but Hanni was quicker, placing a gentle hand on Riki’s arm.
“Nothing is wrong with you.” Hanni insisted, but Riki still looked skeptical.
Sunoo made a soft sound, and Riki gravitated toward him, stepping directly into his open arms without any qualms. Jay was brought back to the very first night Sunghoon brought Riki home, with his back against Sunoo’s chest, the other’s hand in his hair. They looked just the same but somehow different. Sunoo’s fingers dragged over the swollen mark behind his ear, and Jay could feel the waves of pleasure Riki pushed through the bond even without meaning to.
Hanni looked around the kitchen one last time before speaking. Her gaze lingered on Sunoo’s hand on Riki’s waist, on Jungwon unconsciously tracking every movement Riki made, on Jake pressed against Jay because Riki had left the room, on Sunghoon and Heeseung, who reached out every couple of seconds to slide their hands up Riki’s sweatshirt just to feel his skin.
She exhaled slowly.
“...I’ve never seen a bond refuse separation.” She glanced at Heeseung. “Have you?”
Heeseung cringed, not looking at anyone when he quietly replied, “No.”
Jungwon blinked roughly, finally tearing his eyes away from Riki. “What do you mean?”
Hanni leaned back against the counter, snagging a pastry from the container next to her. “Do you remember when you first called to ask about vampire one-source dependency? And then again, when you called because you realized Riki could see bonds he didn’t actively belong to?”
Jungwon nodded very slowly, and even Riki pulled away from Sunoo enough to focus. Hanni looked at them thoughtfully. “When I first saw him around you guys, I thought you were already bonded, because you were all so…attentive. But when you told me you hadn’t marked him, I started looking into other possibilities.”
“A temporary bond.” Sunoo supplied. “I’d thought about it too; it could explain why he reacted so strongly with Sunghoon and Jungwon.”
“Or why you guys reacted so strongly to him,” Hanni suggested.
Jay’s eyebrows drew together, and he shifted on Jake’s lap. “What do you mean?”
Hanni raised a single eyebrow. “You’re kidding, right?”
For a moment, Jay was going to argue, but memories flashed through his head. Jungwon, who refused to let anyone touch Riki, Sunghoon, who picked up on his emotions before anyone else, and the entire coven, somehow were able to sense Riki from across a building. None of it was normal by any sense of the word.
And Jay knew what it was like to be drawn to them; hell, he had to be sedated lest he kill the vampire that tried to drain Jungwon the very first time they’d met. He couldn’t remember even pulling his eyes off of Heeseung enough to blink the first time they’d met. He was so drawn to every one of them, like they were prewritten in his soul.
But Riki? They weren’t pulled toward him; they were dragged. Hard and fast, they didn’t even realize how deep they were until it was far too late. Jay’s hand twitched where it was anchored on the back of Jake’s neck. Without prompting, Jake ran the back of his knuckles up and down the center of Jay’s spine in silent comfort.
Hanni released a long-winded sigh. “I have an idea. But I don’t think you’ll like it.”
“And that is?” Jungwon asked.
“There’s someone I’d like to ask,” Hanni started, scratching at the back of her neck with discomfort.
Jungwon looked up, his eyes set on her in a way that told Jay they’d had this conversation countless times before. “No.”
Hanni threw her arms up in a frustrated huff. “You don’t even know who I was going to say.”
“Nova,” Jungwon said without hesitation.
Hanni paused, “...yeah.”
“So, no.”
“...Nova knows more than I do in this area, she’s been researching similar things that have been rumored in the states, and Jaz has been monitoring the pattern of the victims like crazy—”
Jungwon shot her a look like she’d gone crazy. “We’re not talking about this again.”
“They can help,” Hanni insisted. “They can try. What other options do you have?”
The silence was sliced open by the shrill ringing of Riki’s phone. He fumbled with it for a moment, untangling himself from Sunoo enough to answer the call. He softened slightly, talking in quiet Japanese as he left the room. Every head turned to watch him go, necks straining to catch a glimpse of him as he got further away.
Panic surged through Jay like a hot flash, quick and unyielding. The instinct hit Jay so hard it almost knocked the air from his lungs.
Go after him.
Don't let him leave alone.
Jay was on his feet before he realized he'd moved, catching Jungwon by the wrist just as he took his first step.
“Stop,” he said lowly. He held out his hand to stop Sunghoon from standing up as well, but he never took his eyes off Jungwon.
He heard Heeseung whispering something to Sunghoon, and heard shuffling as Heeseung drew the other into his lap. Jungwon resisted, tugging against Jay’s hold without any real force, testing. Jay raised an unimpressed eyebrow. The rest of their coven watched silently until the tension bled out of Jungwon’s body.
“Who is he on with?”
"His friends.”
Jungwon chewed on his bottom lip hard enough to make it bleed. "Which friends?"
Jay blinked. "The human ones."
"They're laughing," Jungwon said. "...Why?"
Jay tilted his head to one side, catching just enough to answer Jungwon without completely eavesdropping on Riki’s conversation. "Because apparently one of them lost a bet."
"Oh." Jungwon paused. “Can I still go get him?"
Jay shook his head, even if he wanted to do just the same. “No, let him talk.”
Jungwon almost looked like he was…pouting, his eyes landing everywhere but on Jay. He swayed before hanging his head, his voice so low Jay almost missed his next words. “Hyung, it hurts.”
His voice was small, almost pained, and Jay brought him close to his chest, cradling the back of his head. Something dulled in his chest just slightly at the contact, and he kissed the crown of Jungwon’s head. Hanni stayed silent by the counter, but the worry in her gaze was enough to make Jay nauseous. So, maybe, he could admit there was something awry with the bond and its strength.
Riki walked back in at that moment, his phone dangling from one hand, the other pressed tightly to his chest. “This shit hurts,” he said. “Is it always like this?”
“No,” Hanni whispered, stepping in when Jay struggled through the overwhelming wave of warmth. “It’s not usually like this, but at least nothing's ever boring with you.” She said it with a friendly smile, but Riki didn’t return it. He didn’t even look like he saw it.
“How are your friends, baby?” Heeseung asked softly.
Riki brightened instantly. “They’re good, they want to meet at the Veil tonight, so they told me to extend the invitation.” He paused. “Which I guess is stupid because you own the Veil.”
Heeseung shrugged, and Jay sat slowly, pulling Jungwon down to sit with him. “But they don’t know that.”
Riki shifted his weight from one foot to the other. His eyes caught on Jake, and a conversation passed silently between them, one Jay couldn’t read, no matter how hard he tried. Jake stood up dizzyingly quickly, pulling open the fridge with enough urgency to make his coven tear their eyes from Riki to watch him clumsily open a blood bag. Jay shared a look with Heeseung over Jungwon’s head.
Jake pretended not to notice, and Jay could feel his attention slip from them to Riki as Riki approached him, bending his head to talk directly into his ear, too low for Jay to make out. Hanni’s eyebrows furrowed, not necessarily reacting to Jake and Riki but rather the intense attention the rest of his coven had on both of them. She twisted a strand of long, dark hair between her fingers.
“What’s wrong with the Veil?”
Sunoo frowned, his head tipping to the side as he watched Riki and Jake’s conversation escalate into what looked like an argument. “I’m not sure,” he said. “Hyung?”
Jake’s head snapped up, and Riki’s lips pursed as they both turned. Jake looked incredibly anxious in a way that made Jay’s heart pound painfully in the confines of his ribs. His eyes darted between each of them before dropping to the floor, like he could avoid the questions he knew were coming if he just pretended he didn’t exist for the time being.
Riki watched him before leaning back against the counter, his arms crossed over his chest in a bravado Jay knew he was using as a shield. He could feel his hesitation, the wariness Riki unknowingly shoved through the bond, so strong Jay originally had thought it was his own. “Last night wasn’t my first time in the Veil.”
Jay took a minute to process that. He hadn’t considered how Riki knew exactly where they were, but he’d heard Jake whisper to him what they were doing after Jay and Heeseung’s argument. Sunghoon shifted in Heeseung’s lap, his posture slouched, his head resting in the dip where Heeseung’s shoulder met his neck.
“We know.”
Riki’s brows drew together. “You know?” he asked slowly, like he was saying this to help himself process more than anything else.
Sunghoon shrugged, completely unbothered by how still everyone else had gone. Hanni bit at the nail of her thumb nervously, her eyes trained on Jungwon, who had yet to move an inch. When Jay glanced over, Sunoo already had his phone out, and the barest sliver of his screen displayed the Veil’s records. Jay could tell he had found something when he glanced at Sunghoon, his eyes narrowed like he was waiting for Sunghoon to confirm everything he already knew.
Jungwon turned slowly, and Sunghoon answered with a lazy smile. When Jungwon raised a single eyebrow, Sunghoon sat up with a groan, separating himself from Heeseung to perch on the table next to Sunoo. “Jake marked him in the system a couple of weeks ago. He’s been there, what? Eight? Nine times in the past month?”
Jake cringed as Riki turned his eyes to him, awaiting an explanation.
The way Sunoo sucked in a sharp breath told Jay Sunghoon was telling the truth, and Sunoo saw the documentation. Jake was looking at Riki sheepishly, his mouth turned up in an awkward little smile, his fingers twisting together to relieve some tension. Jay cleared his throat.
“Sunoo, can I see your phone, please?”
Sunoo handed the device over without a word, and when Jay unlocked it, the Veil’s records were already displayed on the screen. He scrolled and scrolled and scrolled until something caught his eye. A file tucked away that had never been used until now. There was no need; each member had been marked and a part of the coven long before they ever discovered the Veil, but perhaps that was because it had been mostly underground until recently, only for vampires, among other creatures, to enjoy themselves without the fear of people, but now it was open to all.
Jay vaguely thought about all the paperwork that was going to have to go into making Riki another co-owner now that he’d been marked. He decided not to mention that he’d started the paperwork months ago; perhaps that didn’t need to be mentioned.
He clicked on the file to find that the only thing in it was Riki. What he ordered, who he was around, when he arrived, and when he left. Anything they could want to know about him was written there, plainly. He blew out a breath and handed it over to Jungwon.
“Does anyone want to tell me what that means?” Riki asked.
Jay couldn’t say he’d nearly forgotten Riki was there; he was so hyper-aware of Riki’s every breath, every beat of his heart in his chest, but he’d been so absorbed in everything else that he’d forgotten that Riki didn’t completely understand the implications of what that meant.
“It’s kind of like tracking,” Heeseing said softly, already trying to de-escalate the situation before it got to that point. “It means that your…attendance at the Veil was noticed, documented, along with everything that happened that night, and everything you did.”
Riki’s face blanched. “So you’ve been spying on me?”
“No.” Jake insisted. “No. I just—You didn’t have our mark yet. And we didn’t know when you were going to the Veil, so if anything ever happened, they could call us.”
Riki looked like he wanted to be mad, but couldn’t, not with the serenity on Jake’s face.
“Nova did that with me for a while,” Hanni interjected. “When I first turned, I insisted I was independent, that I didn't want or need them. Nova would pay the clubs I frequented to mark me. They would keep an eye on me to make sure nothing happened. It didn’t need to be used until…”
She sent a sideways glance at Jungwon, who winced at the memory. Jay remembered Hanni’s struggle to adjust to her new life, remembered how often Nova and the others would ask for advice. Jungwon didn’t have the same issues as Hanni, but once they were done trying to maim each other, he would join her in the city so that she wouldn’t be alone. For the most part, it was fine. Jungwon would leave, then return and crawl into the nest with them, but one night he didn’t come home. Heeseung received a phone call, instead, and Jay could remember hearing Nova’s panicked voice on the other end, saying something about both of them running into Hunters. Jay had never run so fast.
Hanni tore her eyes from Jungwon. “The point is, something bad happened, and they called Nova to alert her. That’s probably the only reason we survived.”
“It’s not necessary anymore, though,” Jake said. “We’ll have it removed.”
Jungwon stared at the floor, his mind running so fast that Jay could feel the pressure he was exerting to maintain control over the bond. “Why didn’t you tell me?” He settled on.
Jake shrugged. “You had a lot going on, and I hadn’t even really thought about it until last night.”
Jungwon didn’t quite look like he believed him. He looked down at his hands, frowning at his fingers like they personally ailed him. Jay reached over to squeeze the back of his neck, but Jungwon didn’t respond to the touch as he’d hoped.
Hanni nudged him slightly. “You’re going to have to take him to his first event soon.” She said with a small smile.
Jungwon scoffed, pushing her shoulder slightly. “We barely want to go to those as it is.”
“Yeah, but everyone’s dying to meet him.”
“Amazing, that’s just what we need, every vampire in the city poking and prodding at him like we’re in a fucking zoo.”
Hanni rolled her eyes. “I never said it was going to be pleasant.”
Heeseung let out a dry laugh. “It never is.”
Riki looked between them skeptically, his face an almost uncanny replica of Jake's–tired apprehension. He leaned back against the counter, but Jay suspected it was to have an excuse to fall into Jake, who easily accommodated him. Hanni watched with fond curiosity, her mouth pulling into a wry smile that she shot at Jungwon.
She stood up quickly, clapping her hands together. “Can we try something?”
Jay frowned, not entirely happy about the idea. Heeseung looked no less eager, but gave a shrug when Jungwon turned to him. Jungwon sighed and leaned back heavily in his chair, gesturing with his hand in a ‘go on’ manner. Hanni grinned, practically skipping over to Riki and wrapping a hand around her arm. She tugged, not enough to dislodge him from Jake but enough to insinuate that she needed them to separate.
It looked physically painful when they finally pulled apart, and Jay tried to focus on anything other than the dull ache rising in his chest when Hanni led Riki out of the room. Heeseung beckoned Jake over once Hanni and Riki stepped out of the room, ushering him to sit on the chair in front of him. Jungwon craned his neck back, his body tightening with tension the moment Riki stepped out of sight.
“What are you doing?” he called.
Hanni poked her head back into the room. “Experimenting,” was all she said before disappearing again. For a long moment, everything was still. Jay didn’t even think that anyone dared to take a breath until the dull ache in his chest seized his heart.
He honestly didn’t know vampires could have heart attacks—or at least that’s what he’s assumed was happening. He could feel his knees hit the floor; he could see his coven struggling, gasping for air that wasn’t readily available to them. Distantly, he could feel the same pain, the same struggle echoing through Riki, could feel the push of the bond demanding he go to him, but Jay couldn’t move.
The relief hit him so hard, Jay was convinced he’d died. He stared up at the ceiling lights until Sunoo coughed violently, his hands gripping the skin of his throat. Jay gathered him against his body, unable to tell if Sunoo was the reason they were shaking or if it was remnants of that reaction.
“What the fuck was that?” Sunoo gasped, his voice hoarse and strained. Jay tried to answer, even if it was just to voice his own confusion, but he couldn’t speak. So, instead, he pressed his trembling lips to the top of Sunoo’s head in hope of conveying the message somehow.
Sunoo shuddered, hiding his face in Jay’s chest. Jay wrapped his arms around Sunoo tighter, glancing up to look around the kitchen at his fractured coven. Riki was kneeling on the floor, his hands shifting to cup the mark he’d left on Jungwon’s neck, to Heeseung’s chest, Sunghoon’s jaw, and Jake’s shoulder. It was almost as if he was checking to make sure his marks were still there, still intact, and ingrained in their skin. The others didn’t look like they were in much better shape; their chests rattled with air they’d been deprived of for too long, and they grabbed at every available inch of skin they could.
Jay settled a little, looking at them, but nothing in him really quieted until Riki looked up, his eyes moving so fast in their panic that he completely missed them. “Riki.”
Sunoo peeked his head out, and Jay could hear his breath leave him in a whoosh when he caught sight of Riki. For a moment, they were frozen, just staring at each other, but then Riki was scrambling up. Jay was too stunned to move, watching instead as Riki hurriedly ran the short distance to them, dropping down on his knees so hard Jay was sure they’d bruise.
His movements were hurried, but his grip was gentle when he grabbed Jay’s wrist, turning it over to inspect it. Jay audibly heard his sigh of relief when he saw his mark still punctured into his skin. Jay couldn’t look away from his face, from him. He cupped Riki’s jaw, running his thumb over his skin.
“Are you okay?” he managed.
Riki shuddered, curling closer to them, and Jay wrapped his arm around Riki instead. “I’m better now.”
Sunoo took his time inspecting Riki for himself, checking him over again and again until Riki gathered his hands in his own, giving them a small kiss. His coven had inched closer at some point. Jungwon looked hollow, and even Heeseung looked like he’d been through a war and more. Sunghoon murmured something, and Sunoo crawled over to him, fitting himself neatly in the crook of Sunghoon’s neck. Jay guided Jake over to him, gently kissing any part of him he could reach, as if he could physically remove the lingering pain from his muscles.
Hanni cleared her throat. Jay had forgotten she was there. She looked horrified, near tears, even as she straightened. “I know this is bad timing. But I need a volunteer, anyone but Riki.”
When no one answered her, Jay sighed, already regretting his decision as he stood on shaky legs. Jungwon and Riki grabbed at him, their faces and grips pleading with him not to go.
Jay smiled as disarmingly as he could. “It’s okay. The bond was reacting to Riki’s absence because he’s newer to it, right?”
Jungwon didn’t look convinced, but slowly let go. Jay waited patiently for Riki to do the same. When he made his way to Hanni, she lowered her head but waved a hand forward and led Jay out of the room. He could hear her apologizing, but Jay didn’t acknowledge it. He knew she wasn’t at fault, but that also meant Riki could only go a certain distance before the bond reacted violently.
“What are we…testing now?”
Hanni practically chewed through her lip. “If the reaction is Riki-centered.”
“And do you think it is?”
He barely heard her answer. “I hope so.”
“How far did you get before…” He waved one hand vaguely, hoping to get his point across.
They’d reached the back door, and Hanni opened it for him, pointing in the distance. “Maybe a mile, a mile and a half south.”
Jay tipped his head in acknowledgement and stepped outside. He didn’t even think he got his other foot through the threshold before he collapsed to the ground. The pain returned tenfold, lighting every nerve on fire. He thought he could hear himself screaming, hear Hanni curse. He was vaguely aware that he was moving, but he couldn’t feel it. He couldn’t feel anything.
Just as the pain was reaching a crescendo, just as Jay thought he couldn’t bear any more, it stopped. So abruptly, it left Jay twitching on the kitchen floor. His ears were ringing as he pushed himself to sit up. Hanni was sobbing into her hand, her own body shaking as if she too experienced the pain.
He was only vaguely aware of the hands on him. He could hear his coven calling his name, could feel their touch on his skin, but he didn’t have the energy to do any more than lean into them.
Someone sharply jabbed at the mark Sunghoon had left on his chest, and Jay took a gasping breath of air. Sunghoon was framing his face with both hands, his features tight with enough nerves to tell Jay that he’d felt it too. They all had. Jay started whispering reassurances before he could process what he was saying, and they all buried close, like, until the aftermath passed, they needed him. Jay blinked, kissing Jungwon's temple when he leaned close enough. But he was somewhere else entirely.
They were so fucked.
***
Heeseung ran the tip of his finger up and down the center of Jay’s spine. Occasional tremors racked his body, making Heeseung’s hand clench against his shirt. He could tell Jay was trying to play it off, pretending like he wasn’t still feeling the after-effects of Hanni’s experiment. They’d migrated over to the couch at some point, slowly, painfully. He’d been more than reluctant to part from any member of his coven, but he couldn’t argue that the kitchen floor was starting to get uncomfortable.
Jay twisted his fingers together to try to hide the shaking, but he couldn’t cover it fast enough. Heeseung bit his tongue but didn’t say anything. Jake had rolled up Jay’s sleeve, tracing along the lines of his veins. Riki was somewhere squished in between all of them, almost impossible to see beneath the tangle of limbs. He seemed just as shaken, his breath still heaving as if his body was prepared for a repeat.
“I’m so sor—”
“Don’t.” Jungwon gritted out, his voice still thick with pain. “We’re not ever doing that again.”
Hanni opened her mouth once, but settled with nodding tearily, turning her face into Nova’s chest. Nova rubbed her shoulder gently and kissed her temple before turning back to face them, the softness in her face morphing into slight distance.
“It sounds like your bond is treating you all like one organism,” she said quietly.
Heeseung sighed, bracing his forehead against Jay’s back momentarily. “That explains a lot. And yet, absolutely none of it should be possible.”
“It’s not because he’s new.”
“Yeah, I figured.”
“Aren’t you an ancient one?” Nova asked. “An original? You haven’t seen anything like this?”
Heeseung glared at her, and Jay leaned back into him in response. “No, I’ve never seen a bond that treated an entire coven as one person and backfired when the members of that coven separated,” he said flatly.
“The distance got shorter,” Jay whispered, his words barely audible to Heeseung.
Heeseung’s attention was diverted immediately. “What do you mean?”
Jay swallowed, his body trembling. “Riki made it about a mile and a half into the woods,” he paused. “I didn’t even make it past the back door.”
Heeseung pressed a kiss to Jay’s temple, trying to release some of the tension in his body before turning back to Nova. “The threshold shortened. We aggravated it.”
Nova blinked slowly, like she was processing the information. “I don’t like this.”
Heeseung gave a humorless laugh. “No shit. We’re not particularly thrilled either.”
Someone shifted, the tangled way they were all thrown on the couch moved everyone slightly, and somehow, without looking, Heeseung knew it was Riki. He detangled himself with surprising ease, taking enough steps away from the couch that something in Heeseung panicked a bit. But Riki wasn’t looking at them. His arms crossed over his chest with the same stubbornness Heeseung knew all too well.
“Is this my fault?” He asked, completely serious. “They weren’t like this before I entered the bond, so am I the one fucking up the bond. Will it go back to normal if I leave it?”
Heeseung thought he was going to be sick. They finally got Riki; he didn’t know if any of them were strong enough to withstand him leaving. He wasn’t aware how quiet it had gotten until Riki turned back to them with a curious look. Something caught in his chest when Riki swept his gaze over all of them before turning to Heeseung.
Heeseung shook his head slowly; his voice betrayed him, but he hoped he got his point across somehow. Nova cleared her throat, jostling Hanni a little, who was quietly observing all of them. “I don’t think that would be a good idea.”
Riki chewed his lip, his nails digging into his biceps. “But would it work?”
“I think your coven would sooner slaughter anyone who came close enough to try to sever your bond.”
“But that’s just the bond talking, they’re not thinking clearly if the bond is making them do these things.”
Heeseung couldn’t decide if he wanted to throttle Riki or hide him away somewhere. Either way, something was building up in his chest. His bones felt itchy, and his head was pounding with the effort to keep everything from flooding the bond.
“The bond isn’t making us do anything,” Jungwon said, his voice dipping dangerously low.
Riki turned to him, exacerbated. “Hyung—”
Some of the anger sizzled out of Jungwon when he looked at Riki, and Heeseung would laugh if he had the energy. “We finally have you.” He whispered, his gaze dropping to his hands. “Please, don’t make us lose you.”
Riki cracked a little, his voice taking on a nervous edge. “But what if it could help—”
“It won’t,” Jungwon said as if it were definitive, like he saw all the possibilities and knew this wasn’t one. And Heeseung knew it too.
“The bond is aggravated because we tried to separate,” Heeseung reasoned. “Trying to remove you from the bond would take emotion and a stability the bond does not have. I don’t think any of us would survive it, baby.”
His words had the opposite effect. Riki looked horrified, and he took more stumbling steps back, like he could save them from their fate by removing himself physically. Heeseung stood swiftly, catching him by the arm and tugging to bring him closer. He didn’t care that they technically had an audience; all he could focus on was the suffocating fear Riki was pumping through the bond with surprising strength.
He cupped Riki’s face in his hands, forcing Riki to focus on one thing at a time. “Do you want to go?”
Jay's fingers tightened so suddenly around Jungwon's sleeve that the fabric wrinkled. Jake stopped breathing entirely, and Sunghoon closed his eyes like he could pretend nothing was happening at all. Jungwon looked at Heeseung like he'd been struck.
“We would do anything for you, and if that includes letting you go because that’s what you want, then so be it.”
Riki watched him with wide eyes. “But you said—”
“Don’t worry about what I said. What do you want?”
Riki deflated, his shoulders dropping, his resolve gone. “I want to stay. I don't belong anywhere else anymore, even if that’s selfish.”
Heeseung felt weak with relief. If Riki had decided he wanted to, Heeseung would have let him. He would have found someone who could remove the bond, and he would have let him go even if it killed him.
For now, he kissed the corner of Riki’s mouth, allowing the other vampire to fit himself against Heeseung’s body, like he physically couldn’t stand to be away from him. And maybe he couldn’t. Heeseung didn’t pay attention to Hanni, and Nova shifted closer to Jungwon, talking in hushed voices. Heeseung could still hear if he wanted to.
Riki had his phone out, texting out a string of apologies to his friends, and Heeseung frowned. “We’re going.”
Riki looked at him like he had lost his mind. “Hyung, it’s fine, we can go out with them another time—”
“No, we’re going.”
“After what just happened?” Jake asked, incredulous.
Heeseung nodded, slowly migrating over to sit on the floor in front of the couch. “Especially after what happened.”
Jay touched his shoulder lightly, anxiety gnawing at his every nerve. “Hyung, maybe Riki’s right…today’s been a lot.”
Part of Heeseung wanted to agree. He wanted nothing more than to curl up in their nest with his coven. He wanted nothing more than to keep them all to himself, but that wasn’t an option. Not for them. “If we start hiding now, how many people will notice? How long until the council notices?”
Jungwon watched him carefully, and Heeseung could see how he searched for other possibilities, other ways around, probably putting themselves through another round of torture. And he could see when Jungwon came up short.
“We’ve never been subtle about Riki, no matter how hard we tried. And, despite our best efforts, most know he’s our seventh, if he suddenly disappears from the Veil, people will start asking questions we don’t want them to. If we isolate ourselves because we’re afraid of our own bond, then we’re already letting it control us.”
Sunghoon rubbed tiredly at the bridge of his nose. “I really hate it when you’re logical.”
Heeseung swatted at him but didn’t argue the sentiment. Jungwon wrapped his arms around his knees, pressing his lips together. Jay noticed, sharing a look with Heeseung before shifting to whisper something directly in Jungwon’s ear.
When Jay sent him a pointed look, Heeseung prodded at Jungwon through the bond, and Jungwon glared hotly, effectively cutting him off. Heeseung rolled his eyes.
“We’ll be fine, we always are.”
***
The Veil felt louder than it usually did, practically vibrating in Heeseung’s chest. They moved through the crowd with ease, and Heeseung was hit with the recognition that he didn’t remember the last time they’d come here simply for leisure. They made their way to the bar without too much of a hassle, and Heeseung was mildly surprised to find drinks already waiting for them, the work of Ava, no doubt.
His coven fanned out, taking in the scene around them like they were measuring the atmosphere. Sunghoon, surprisingly, seemed the least bothered. He was leaning back on his elbows against the bar, a drink cradled in one hand, and his head tipped back with a relaxed expression resting on his face.
Heeseung took a moment to let himself look until he realized he wasn’t the only one. A younger vampire had her eyes set on Sunghoon, watching him above the rim of her glass. And while Heeseung couldn’t necessarily blame her, something viscous flared in his chest. He stepped into Sunghoon’s personal space without really thinking about it. Sunghoon lifted his head, his free hand landing on Heeseung’s waist as if it had always been there.
Sunghoon hummed when Heeseung nosed at his jawline, forcing his head back again so Heeseung could access his throat. He bit down teasingly, toying with the fragile skin with the tips of his teeth. Sunghoon inhaled sharply, his hand on Heeseung’s waist pulling him closer.
Heeseung grinned around Sunghoon’s skin, stifling a laugh when Sunghoon let out a frustrated grunt and set his glass down on the bar to roughly tug Heeseung’s head up. He accepted Sunghoon’s kiss with ease, eagerly pushing further into Sunghoon’s space. Sunghoon made a quiet sound when Heeseung’s tongue slipped past his teeth, his hand tightening on Heeseung’s waist.
“Enough,” Jay murmured with a hand on his bicep. “We are still in public.”
Heeseung laughed as he pulled away, leaving Sunghoon blinking rapidly. Jake shoved at Jay’s arm, muttering something about being “the fun police”. Heeseung ignored them, sweeping his eyes over the area, satisfied that the vampire from before had gone. Sunghoon followed his gaze and chuckled.
“Possessive much?”
Heeseung shrugged. “I needed to mark my territory, that’s all.”
Somewhere to his right, Jay scoffed, and Heeseung was tempted to remind Jay of how he reacted the night Sunghoon decided to take a stroll through the woods.
Sunghoon tugged on his arm, and Heeseung reverted his entire attention to him. “You haven’t done that in a while.”
Heeseung hummed, swiping his thumb under Sunghoon’s eye. “Maybe that needed to be rectified.”
Sunghoon rolled his eyes, but Heeseung noted the way his pupils dilated ever so slightly in the dim light. Jay set his glass down on the bar with a thud.
“You guys are insatiable," He said, halfway disappearing into the crowd.
“You’re just mad you didn’t join!” Heeseung called after him, and Jay waved his hand dismissively.
He tracked Jay through the room even as he returned to their previous conversation, constantly stealing glances back to reassure himself that Jay was still there. He could tell everyone else was doing it too, uneasy with the fact that Jay had gone so far but relieved every time they could lay eyes on him.
Heeseung beckoned Riki closer. “When did you say your friends were going to get here—”
He barely had time to finish his sentence before someone wrapped him up in a hug. Riki laughed, gripping the other person back, and Heeseung’s arm shot out to stop Sunoo from doing something he’d regret. His sudden movement seemed to alert the other person to their presence. Riki was beaming as he stepped back just far enough that he could point as he introduced everyone officially.
He gestured at the man who had tackled him into a hug. “This is Taki.”
The first thing Heeseung noticed was that Taki looked very young. Even though Riki had told him that he and Taki were only eight months apart. There was something open about his face that made him seem softer than everyone else in the room. He had rounder eyes and a smile that peeked out even while he was speaking.
He also moved constantly. It was never enough to be distracting but just enough that he shifted his weight from one foot to the other, he hooked his fingers into his sleeves, head turning whenever something caught his attention. But then he looked at Riki and his entire expression brightened so quickly it was almost blinding.
Heeseung smiled at him, and Taki dipped his head in a polite bow, his eyes catching on each and every member, looking more baffled with each person.
“And this is K,” Riki continued, completely oblivious to Taki’s struggle.
K was…tall. Not simply due to his height, although he towered over nearly everyone aside from Riki. But it was also in the way he occupied his space. His shoulders were rolled back, his chin level, every movement looked thought through. He didn’t fidget, didn’t even glance around the room. His face was handsome in a sharp, sculpted sort of way that made him ever so slightly difficult to read. He wasn’t expressionless, exactly, but his emotions seemed…contained.
When Riki gestured to the woman she stood a little taller. Ryujin was slender with long dark hair she pulled back into a ponytail. She eyed all of them with a healthy amount of distrust but everything faded into gentle affection when her eyes landed on any of the three men she knew. She held the kind of confidence Heeseung would have envied when he was younger. Her eyes flicked around the room in a way that wasn’t distracted, like Taki, but more like someone creating a silent intake overview in their head.
Heeseung didn’t quite pay attention while Riki introduced each member to his friends, but he did notice all the touches he managed to sneak in: a hand on Jungwon’s shoulder, a gentle brush of his knuckles against Sunoo’s neck. His gaze swept the room once. Then again. Jay wasn’t where he was a few minutes ago. In fact, Heeseung couldn’t find him at all. Riki stopped dead in the middle of his sentence, his eyes also searching the crowded room and Heeseung knew he couldn’t find Jay either by the hitch in his breath. His coven shifted uncomfortably, the realization that they didn’t know where Jay had gone pressed painfully against the bond. The only thing that gave Heeseung some form of comfort was that he knew Jay was still within the building, he couldn’t have gone that far or the bond would’ve reacted violently. Riki’s friends looked between them with concern and confusion as Riki shrank closer to the group, wrapping an arm around Jake’s waist.
“Chill. I’m right here.”
Heeseung took in a full breath of air for what felt like the first time since Jay left. Jay appeared by his shoulder, one hand pressed tightly against the small of Heeseung's back as he leaned forward to smile and introduce himself to Riki’s friends. Riki was watching him with wide eyes, his hands twitching by his sides like he was forcing himself to not reach for Jay. Jay seemed to notice, leaving a kiss on Heeseung’s cheek before moving to the center of the group.
Sunghoon released a tiny breath, sagging back against the bar and Heeseung watched Jay shift so he could subtly touch each of them at one moment or another. The concern had long faded from Riki’s friends, well all except K, who watched them all with rising suspicion. Heeseung watched him back, trying to gauge how much he knew. He was so absorbed in cataloging K’s every move that he nearly missed Jay sliding up to Riki, brushing imaginary dirt off of his shoulder. Riki relaxed easily when Jay’s thumb brushed the mark on his neck. Heeseung could see Jay’s mouth moving as he murmured something only meant for Riki’s ear.
He stepped back, offering a warm smile to the others. “Well, we aren’t here to stand around and talk, are we?” He paused. “But if we are, I suggest we go upstairs.”
Riki blinked, turning to Taki. “Come dance with us?”
“Us?” Taki echoed.
“Yep.” Riki didn’t give him an opportunity to respond, grabbing his arm and Sunoo’s and dragging them somewhere the music pounded loud. Sunoo didn’t seem to mind, grinning when Riki pulled him back against him, his head tipping back against Riki’s shoulder. Taki didn’t look phased by either of them, swaying in time with the beat of the music. Heeseung watched them, taking slow sips of his drink every once in a while.
“So…” K started. “How did you meet Riki, again?”
Ryujin elbowed him sharply. “Stop, you promised you wouldn’t do this today.”
K rolled his eyes, ignoring her as he passed her a drink. Sunghoon cleared his throat awkwardly, sending Jungwon a look that screamed “help”. Jay slipped an arm around his shoulders.
“Sunghoon met him first, here. He was drunk, and didn’t have any ID on him, so Sunghoon brought him home to sleep it off.” Jay shrugged. “We figured we’d never see him again. Instead, he kept coming back. Eventually we just…gave him a key.”
Sunghoon snorted into his drink. “As if you didn’t set up an entire bedroom for him the moment you met him.”
Jay smacked him upside the head but didn’t argue against the statement. K nodded along, not looking entirely convinced.
“You gave him a key after…how long?”
Jay thought about it. “Longer than Heeseung wanted.”
Heeseung laughed. “Three weeks.”
“Two and a half,” Jungwon corrected.
“That isn’t much better.”
Jungwon shrugged, turning to grab another drink the bartender slid to them. “Maybe, maybe not.”
K still looked doubtful, but Ryujin had a soft expression on her face, an endearing look that she turned onto Riki, then back again to the coven. Heeseung leaned over Sunghoon to tug on Jake’s arm.
“Come dance with me?” he asked.
Jake smiled, leaning into his space. “Fine, if you insist.” He laced their fingers together, taking a surprised Sunghoon with them as he dragged them onto the dance floor near Riki and Sunoo.
The music was louder on the dance floor, bass vibrating through the polished wood beneath Heeseung's shoes. Colored lights swept lazily across the crowd, catching on laughing faces and glittering glasses before disappearing again. Jake tugged him forward by their joined hands.
"You've been thinking too much," Jake murmured.
"I always think too much." Heeseung argued
"I know."
Sunghoon appeared behind them, bumping his shoulder against Heeseung's hard enough to make him stumble.
"Ow." Heeseung rubbed at his shoulder, pouting even as the pain faded.
"You'll survive."
"I don't know," Heeseung sighed dramatically. "I think you fractured something. I’ll have to call Jay."
Sunghoon rolled his eyes. "You're impossible."
Jake laughed softly between them, still holding both of their hands. He gave a gentle pull until they naturally settled into a loose triangle, the crowd moving around them as if they'd always occupied that little pocket of space.
For a while, they simply swayed. The music wasn’t slow, but none of them particularly cared what the song was. Heeseung watched Sunghoon and Jake instead.
The harsh lines they’d worn all afternoon had finally begun to soften. Their shoulders weren't pulled so tight anymore. The corners of Sunghoon’s mouth twitched every time Jake absentmindedly brushed against him.
It was...nice.
Jake caught him staring. "What?"
"Nothing."
"Liar."
"I was appreciating the view."
Sunghoon barked out a laugh and Jake looked delighted. "Oh?"
Heeseung shrugged, tugging on the collar of Jake’s shirt. "You clean up well."
Jake gave an exaggerated spin that made Heeseung snort. "You say that like I usually don't."
"You usually look like you just woke up."
"I usually have just woken up."
"Fair." Heeseung allowed, stepping just a little bit closer.
Jake stepped back into them before either of them could say anything else, looping an arm around Sunghoon's neck while reaching blindly for Heeseung again.
Heeseung went willingly. He always would.
Jake rested his forehead briefly against Sunghoon's before turning enough to offer Heeseung the side of his neck.
It wasn't even a conscious invitation. Just a habit.
Heeseung's hand settled on Jake's waist, fingers curling into the fabric of his shirt as he leaned down. He pressed a lingering kiss beneath Jake's jaw instead of biting.
Jake's eyes fluttered shut.
"Cheater," Sunghoon muttered.
"What?"
"You know he likes that."
"I do." Heeseung murmured, smiling around Jake’s throat.
Sunghoon huffed, though there wasn't an ounce of annoyance behind it. He reached up to cup the back of Heeseung's neck, dragging him sideways until their foreheads bumped together.
"There."
Heeseung smiled. "There what?"
"Now we're even."
Heeseung laughed quietly. "I don't think that's how affection works."
"It is today."
The three of them dissolved into another fit of laughter. Around them, people danced without paying much attention. Except… Heeseung caught sight of K watching them from the bar. Not judgmental or uncomfortable. Just...curious.
As though he couldn't quite reconcile the people he’d thought kidnapped and held their friend hostage moments ago with the three men currently bickering over kisses like teenagers.
Heeseung almost waved. Instead, he let Jake pull him into another turn, his fingers brushing Sunghoon's as they traded places.
Across the dance floor, Riki laughed so hard he nearly doubled over after something Taki had done. Sunoo had somehow ended up behind him again, his chin balanced comfortably on Riki's shoulder while they swayed with the music. Jungwon stood beside Jay near the bar, deep in conversation, but every few moments one of them would look up without thinking, eyes finding the others before returning to the conversation as if nothing had happened.
The bond hummed. Not painfully, but a present warmth that spread through his veins. For the first time since the ritual, Heeseung realized something. It wasn't hurting them because they were together. It was hurting them because it was afraid they'd be apart.
He wasn't sure whether it comforted him…
Or terrified him.