[Fic] Irresistible - Epilogue
Title: Irresistible
Pairing: Zhou Mi/Kyuhyun
Rating: NC-17
Genre: AU, vampire, smut, historical
Warnings: References to issues of consent (not in fic itself), fictional drug use
Summary: The streets of Zhou Mi's city are being contaminated with a new drug - Euphoria. Pure vampire blood, it causes a high unlike any other, but when the high fades, the nightmares begin. It is the spread of Euphoria that Zhou Mi fights, and in that fight he needs a partner to get him to places and people that only a vampire can.
***
Chapter One - Chapter Two - Chapter Three - Chapter Four - Chapter Five - Chapter Six - Chapter Seven - Chapter Eight - Chapter Nine - Chapter Ten - Epilogue
***
Changmin was waiting for Zhou Mi outside of the Choi residence when Zhou Mi climbed out of the carriage. The note had arrived from Sooyoung not an hour before, hinting at information that Changmin had so recently written to Zhou Mi of as well - rumors of another storehouse and how to proceed. He hadn’t forgotten the note Changmin had sent on Kyuhyun’s letterhead, but in the succeeding days it had not been forefront either, especially with Kyuhyun waiting for him at home. Their home.
“Did Sooyoung call for you?” Zhou Mi asked.
“Of a sort. Apparently she agreed he I should be here, since it was my information. Even then she won’t let me in without a human chaperone.” And Changmin scowled as Zhou Mi smirked. “Yes, I know, I should feel fortunate that I’m allowed in at all.”
“When your whole life is built around the protection of your family and others from perceived threats, it’s hard to change even for the trustworthy.”
“Did no one teach you to be afraid?”
“It would be arrogant if I said no. I had a good teacher to get any fear out of me,” Zhou Mi said.
Changmin laughed at the thought of Kyuhyun being a teacher of anything, and fell into step just behind Zhou Mi’s elbow.
Sooyoung rose to greet them, and Zhou Mi did not offer a hand, inclining his head in respect instead.
“You are welcome, gentlemen. This is the second time I have had a vampire in this home. It is proof of how urgent these matters are. Please, sit.”
They did, taking chairs near each other facing Sooyoung.
“Has there been no more information from the paperwork and books in the storehouse?” Zhou Mi asked.
“Some. Names. The humans we captured there have been more forthcoming. It is like piecing together a puzzle we have very little knowledge of. But speaking of that,” Sooyoung said. “How are you? To put down your experiences would be worthwhile for us.”
Zhou Mi did not mind to say, though it was not easy to contemplate at times. “The nightmares are surely the worst part. The weakness, that was a side effect, but the nightmares and terrors I had, it is no wonder the patients scream. I likely did as well, though I don’t remember it so much. But the images stay vivid with me, and I do still wake in terror even after the Euphoria is cleared from me.”
Sooyoung nodded, her face thoughtful. “I wish it wasn’t so. It’s a horrible side-effect that there seems to be no cure for. Still, for as ill as you were, you look well.”
“Thank you. I am much improved. Mostly thanks to Changmin.”
He nodded at Changmin and received a half smile in return.
“Yes, I’ve heard how he helped you. Though surely some of that is related to your return to your… To Kyuhyun.”
He appreciated her use of Kyuhyun’s name instead of the instinctual “vampire.” Though calling Kyuhyun his would never cease to amuse him.
“We are both very pleased to be together again,” Zhou Mi acknowledged. Though that was quite an understatement. “And he has certainly helped my recovery as well.”
Due to the teeth, in a very special way, though it was not something Zhou Mi could speak of to Sooyoung. Changmin’s lips curved a bit, likely from their shared secret of that particular knowledge. He wasn’t sure how Changmin would’ve stopped him if he’d decided to share the secret, but Zhou Mi was certain it wouldn’t have been pretty.
“I note he didn’t join you here this evening.”
“He had pressing business to attend to,” Zhou Mi said.
If pressing business was seeing that his home was ready for Zhou Mi’s belongings to be moved into, and prepared for a growing child, then yes. They had a slim few days with which to prepare before going to fetch Jinyong and they both intended for the house to be ready by their return. When Zhou Mi had asked Kyuhyun whether Zhou Mi should go alone to fetch Jinyong, Kyuhyun had baldly laughed at him. Apparently Zhou Mi would not get that far alone, and Zhou Mi had no objections to it. When Zhou Mi had left, Kyuhyun had been sorting through estimates from carpenters and muttering about hiring a cook.
They each had their strengths and Kyuhyun was clearly in the midst of one of his. Zhou Mi hadn’t been sad to leave Kyuhyun to it, and for Kyuhyun there would have been no benefit to having Zhou Mi there. That pleased him because they were each their own man and unwilling to give that up.
“So to the storehouse then,” Sooyoung said.
“It is a long game,” Changmin said. “I have two vampires, one of which has… We’ll say, questionable connections. No solid leads, but there’s a possibility of him working his way toward that end. Driving them further underground will hurt them, and us, but it also buys us time.”
“If we get several leaders,” Zhou Mi mused. “There’s a possibility to fragment it. We’ve been receiving angry and dismayed responses from at least half a dozen vampires who’ve pledged to stop the use of their blood and to spread awareness for vampires being bled by force. If the supply dries up, that too will be an advance.”
Sooyoung nodded, rising and skirting her desk. In her hand, a piece of paper that was offered to Zhou Mi. He unfolded it, curious, mouth parting as he read the numbers on it and looked up at her.
“For bribes, for nurses, for payment of vampires helping to cure diseases,” Sooyoung said. “Your Organization is not set up to fight, but you fight a different front. The Choi family can no longer ignore the evils outside of the punishment of rogue vampires. We’ll advance together, equally.”
Zhou Mi stood and held out his hand, as solemnly as he could to her. She took it, and they shook on it, a silent agreement.
“You’ll always know what we know,” Zhou Mi pledged. “I have not been scared from helping, but for the sake of my…family, I am going to focus on recovery efforts with the Organization.”
Sooyoung nodded, smiling. “Yes, I understand.”
“And you have the support of many vampires as well,” Changmin said, but he made no gesture to reach out. He likely still remembered the slap.
“You should be liaison,” Sooyoung said to Changmin, and surprised both of them. “A vampire’s insight could be useful, and you have a connection to Zhou Mi already. You can do what he cannot.”
It was the truth, and though Changmin had been dragged into it unwillingly, he gave a short nod. “I can do that.”
When they were finished with the logistics of their information sharing, Changmin was the first out the door, and he turned to Zhou Mi on the sidewalk.
“Is Kyuhyun still angry with me?”
“That you should ask him yourself,” Zhou Mi said, unwilling to stand between two people who’d known each other for longer than he’d been alive. Though still, it wasn’t in him to leave Changmin totally in the dark. “We will soon be going to the country to fetch Jinyong. When we return, you should call on him.”
There was anger, hurt, betrayal. But some of that could be soothed. A new footing found, perhaps.
And Zhou Mi held out his hand and shook Changmin’s hand on that as well.
***
The journey to Changmin’s country home was long and tiring, the days trapped in the carriage in perpetual motion - and in perpetual dark. Kyuhyun could close himself up so that Zhou Mi could get a little light to read but at night there was little enough relief from it but for the moon that wasn’t often eager to assist them. It was good that they liked each other, though that much time together could’ve been a strain on anyone. When he voiced that aloud, he got muffled snorts against his neck. They did not even bother to stop along the way, the drivers swapping shifts and changing horses as they could. Once they were in motion, he wanted nothing to delay them. The only time they truly stopped was in the town nearest Changmin’s country home, waiting for the sun to fall so that Kyuhyun would be awake for their arrival.
“I am going to be glad not to be in a moving conveyance,” Kyuhyun muttered, and Zhou Mi kissed his temple. They would take it much slower on their return trip, having two carriages and Jinyong to think of.
“Will the world feel like it’s still moving when we stop?” Zhou Mi asked, teasing.
“You’re lucky I sleep well no matter what. We’ll have our own bed when we arrive.”
Zhou Mi, for one, was looking forward to it.
But not more than he was looking forward to seeing Jinyong. A letter had preceded them, so Victoria to prepare Jinyong for their arrival. It was upheaval enough, but as the carriage made its way up the long driveway, Kyuhyun squeezed Zhou Mi’s arm.
“I’m going to let you go in first,” Kyuhyun said.
And when Zhou Mi opened his mouth to protest, Kyuhyun shook his head. “We don’t know if his fear of vampires lingers, and I would rather not taint his first happiness of seeing you. I’ll wait by the door for when you think he’s ready.”
It was obvious it was something that Kyuhyun had been thinking of, so Zhou Mi didn’t argue. He didn’t offer up any pretty sentiments, either, because he knew he could not promise that Jinyong would lose his fear of vampires - of Kyuhyun in particular. But there was time, and there was love, and they had enough of both, he thought as he stroked the soft toy he balanced on his leg. Jinyong had good, happy memories of Kyuhyun, and Zhou Mi was counting on those and Jinyong’s letters. Remembering Jinyong’s concern at Kyuhyun being hurt, that had him grasping Kyuhyun’s hand. He would believe for the both of them.
And even with the stretching he had done before, he was stiff climbing down out of the carriage. Kyuhyun was at his heels, hand on Zhou Mi’s back as they swept up the front entrance and were greeted by the staff.
“Jinyong and Victoria?” Zhou Mi asked.
“This way, sir.”
“Go,” Kyuhyun whispered to him.
And Zhou Mi’s eyes were all for Jinyong when he walked into the room he was led to. Jinyong sat at a low table, tongue between his teeth as he scribbled furiously on paper laid out in front of him. Victoria saw him first, her hand on Jinyong’s shoulder.
Zhou Mi’s heart clutched when Jinyong gasped, all but leaping out of the chair and racing toward him. But he stopped several steps away, staring up at Zhou Mi as though he wasn’t real. Zhou Mi smiled, crouching and holding out something so very familiar to both of them.
“I brought the bear,” Zhou Mi said, holding out the bear Jinyong had left with him before going into the country. “I kept him safe for you.”
“Zhou Mi,” Jinyong sobbed, and threw himself into Zhou Mi’s arms. Zhou Mi’s eyes closed, gripping Jinyong as tight as he dared and trying to swallow the tears that threatened to choke him.
“Oh my sweet boy,” Zhou Mi crooned, rocking Jinyong back and forth. “I’m so sorry it took so long. But I will do everything I can to make sure we stay together now.”
“I can stay with you?” Jinyong wavered.
“Yes. This time we’ll be safe together.”
Jinyong pulled back and they grinned at each other, a bit damp in the eye, both of them. Zhou Mi stroked Jinyong’s soft hair and was so glad he hadn’t delayed. Time was so fleeting, and too precious. A thought seemed to occur to Jinyong, clutching the bear up to his neck.
“Kyuhyun?” Jinyong asked, staring at Zhou Mi with wet, worried eyes.
“He’s here,” Zhou Mi said, and his voice nearly cracked to say it. “Kyuhyun?”
Zhou Mi turned to look over his shoulder, and Jinyong looked with him, gasping again as Kyuhyun came out from behind the door and crouched beside Zhou Mi. He waited, wondering how Jinyong would respond.
“Zhou Mi’s letters before said you were going away,” Jinyong said. And even if the last letter had said differently, Zhou Mi could understand why Jinyong worried.
“Not anymore,” Kyuhyun said, stopping just short of extending his hand. “We’ve come to take you home, to my home. All three of us will stay there. And your nanny.”
Zhou Mi could feel the trembles start under his hand on Jinyong’s back. But what happened next surprised even him: when Jinyong lunged for Kyuhyun’s neck and hugged him, sending him sprawling on his backside.
And Kyuhyun looked to him, eyes wide and startled as though he wondered what he was supposed to do with the child mewling into his shoulder.
“Hug him,” Zhou Mi breathed, steadying Kyuhyun.
And it started with an awkward pat to Jinyong’s back, but Kyuhyun did. Jinyong wasn’t afraid, wasn’t thinking Kyuhyun would bite him. Instead of wallowing in that relief, Zhou Mi did what he wanted to do and enfolded them both, pressing a kiss against Jinyong’s hair.
“We’re finally together,” Zhou Mi said, and Jinyong nodded vigorously. “We’ll stay here a few days and then travel back together to Kyuhyun’s- to our home.”
Just sitting there, holding Jinyong gave Zhou Mi a chance to look up, to greet Victoria with a wave at least. She had done so well looking after Jinyong, and Jinyong looked so strong, so much better than he had when he had left. He could have sat there forever, cradling both Jinyong and Kyuhyun close, but Jinyong, of the three of them, had much more energy.
“I can show you my books!” Jinyong said with excitement, standing and nearly knocking Zhou Mi in the head. He raced for the table where various things were stacked. “I have new clothes. I have a little sailboat for my bath, too!”
Zhou Mi and Kyuhyun both made appropriately impressed noises, leaning in against each other.
“And we can play with my puppy,” Jinyong said, making a great pile of the books in front of him.
Kyuhyun turned his head and Zhou Mi blinked at him.
“He has a puppy?”
“Did I not tell you?” Zhou Mi asked cautiously. “It’s small, or so Victoria wrote.”
Zhou Mi might have been worried but for the brief but intense elbow battle that they waged.
“You’ll be in charge of any messes,” Kyuhyun said, resigned to the point where he might as well have been assigning himself to death.
But Zhou Mi still kissed his cheek, pleased as Kyuhyun leaned into him again.
***
Letting Jinyong sleep in their bed while at Changmin’s country home was an indulgence, not something intended to create a habit. The first night, at least, Jinyong would get to be assured that they would not sneak off in the middle of the night and leave him. Kyuhyun accepted the addition with grace, helped by the fact they’d found a discreet location for Kyuhyun to feed before Jinyong was ready to sleep. It was Jinyong’s time to heal even more than they already had. Once back in the city, Jinyong would have his own room, and would be secure in knowing he belonged there.
And there was a fourth occupant of the room.
“No dog on the bed,” Kyuhyun said, heading that off immediately. “Only people.”
“He sleeps on my bed,” Jinyong protested. “He’ll get lonely.”
Kyuhyun and Jinyong stared at each other, and Zhou Mi stayed silent. He wasn’t going to get into the middle of that.
“Would you rather sleep in your bed then?” Kyuhyun asked.
Jinyong thought a moment. “No?”
“Then the dog will manage on the floor tonight,” Kyuhyun said, and leveraged himself out of bed. “I’ll make him a nest out of my shirt.”
Jinyong giggled against Zhou Mi’s arm. “Dogs don’t sleep in nests.”
“Puppies do,” Zhou Mi said. “Sometimes little boys.”
Zhou Mi was touched that Kyuhyun was making a place for the pup to sleep, and amused at his orders for the dog to stay there. Jinyong was squeezing his fingers, waiting for Kyuhyun to get back in bed so they could sleep. Or wrestle, he wasn’t sure, since it seemed that Kyuhyun and Jinyong were just as prone to that as Jinyong and his puppy were.
“The dog just peed on my leg,” Kyuhyun said, sounding very resigned.
There was nothing for Zhou Mi to do but hug Jinyong and laugh.
But when Jinyong was asleep, and Kyuhyun was back in bed, Zhou Mi reached for him. Even with a child sprawled between them, he did not accept that distance. Kyuhyun nipped the knuckles on Zhou Mi’s extended hand first, before resting his face against it. Kyuhyun read by the light and Zhou Mi napped with Jinyong against him, tired from the journey. Jinyong was a restless sleeper and Kyuhyun was not. Zhou Mi woke at one point to find both of Jinyong’s legs over Kyuhyun’s side, his head on Zhou Mi’s ribs. It took a little straightening but Jinyong was still fast asleep, and Zhou Mi chuckled as he got some more well-deserved rest.
***
Zhou Mi wasn’t sure who was more pleased to be back in town, Kyuhyun or Jinyong. Jinyong and the puppy made no delay in getting acquainted with every room and corner. Though, Kyuhyun had taken Jinyong’s hand and given him the tour including the areas he was supposed to keep out of. Zhou Mi had stayed back and heard a number of, “And Zhou Mi says so, too,” as though Kyuhyun was using him as backup. It made him laugh and snuggle Jinyong’s pup, who was still learning where not to relieve himself to Kyuhyun’s long-suffering sighs.
But there was so much more to being back than that. Even with Sooyoung and the Choi family’s significant contribution, money would always be needed to fund care. Their first night back alone Zhou Mi spent hours poring over his incoming letters and writing responses until Kyuhyun had tickled him out of his chair for a well-deserved bite and rest.
His desk was back, facing Kyuhyun’s in the library. That was the most significant thing to him, more so even than his clothes in Kyuhyun’s room, the new cook, and Jinyong’s new school/playroom. It was Kyuhyun’s way of keeping him close, in a different way than it had been at the start. The desk had been there because Kyuhyun had wanted to make sure Zhou Mi honored his agreement, and to keep an eye on him for safety. Or maybe, just to keep an eye on him. It was ease, familiarity, being able to look up and share a joke, a sly look, a wink. Part of their downfall to start with, not that he was counting it against them.
“We should start interviewing tutors for Jinyong,” Kyuhyun said, leaning back into his office chair and mussing up his already-messy hair from just that same action of his hand. “Victoria is more than qualified to continue his education, but in some areas it should be expanded.”
Zhou Mi thought on that a moment, nodding. They’d already discussed and dismissed the idea of Jinyong going to a local school, for his own safety.
“Agreed. There’s another man in the Organization with a boy about Jinyong’s age, so I’ll be able to set up a time for them to get together and play. Perhaps he’ll also have some suggestions on tutors.”
There were so many things in motion, like the most healthy of the Euphoria patients being moved into Zhou Mi’s former home, and the move of Jinyong’s mother and siblings into a new home in the sheep wards. With Jinyong’s father in custody, there had been no one to help, and even if Jinyong’s mother had not sold him, he had wanted there to be no hard choices for her regarding herself and her children. Jinyong had been given the choice, would always have the choice between his family or Zhou Mi, but he would see Jinyong’s siblings safe as well, and fed. Without a man to drink and gamble away the funds, Zhou Mi suspected that the family would be much better off in all ways.
Zhou Mi wanted Jinyong to know he was secure in his place, but also to know that in coming to live with Zhou Mi, his family hadn’t been abandoned. In the move, they’d learned Jinyong’s birthday, so the preparations were already underway on that day to pack up food, books, and toys, and visit Jinyong’s siblings. Jinyong’s face had fairly shined with it, so secure on Kyuhyun’s lap as they wrote out the list together.
“What sweet thing are you thinking about now?” Kyuhyun asked, having gotten up to stand beside him. It made Zhou Mi stand as well.
“So obvious?” Zhou Mi wondered, and Kyuhyun’s eyebrows rose as though to tell him so. “Jinyong’s birthday. How sweet he is.”
“He is,” Kyuhyun agreed. “And is your hand about done for the evening?”
Never completely done, as well they both knew.
“I sent off a message to Changmin about our progress so he can pass it along to Sooyoung.”
Kyuhyun laughed, delighted. “Sometimes I wonder if he thinks she hit him with some kind of thrall of her own to get him to agree to all of this. But it’s good for him, keeps him out of trouble.”
Changmin showing up with a thick encyclopedia of sharks for Jinyong had been more likely to soften Zhou Mi’s heart than Kyuhyun’s, but there was a cautious kind of truce there. Maybe it was stubbornness keeping them from fully reconciling more than anything, but he was going to support Kyuhyun through it - especially since he knew it had no bearing on Kyuhyun’s feelings for Zhou Mi.
He smoothed down Kyuhyun’s hair, tweaked at the loose collar with no neck cloth whatsoever. Love suited Kyuhyun, content on every feature. His vampire. And he nearly chuckled to himself to think it.
“Time for bed, now that you’ve conquered the city by pen alone,” Kyuhyun murmured.
Zhou Mi kissed Kyuhyun’s neck, and breathed, content. They both knew it wasn’t just with a pen.
And not alone.
***
***
(Thank all you lovelies for reading~ <3)
Pairing: Zhou Mi/Kyuhyun
Rating: NC-17
Genre: AU, vampire, smut, historical
Warnings: References to issues of consent (not in fic itself), fictional drug use
Summary: The streets of Zhou Mi's city are being contaminated with a new drug - Euphoria. Pure vampire blood, it causes a high unlike any other, but when the high fades, the nightmares begin. It is the spread of Euphoria that Zhou Mi fights, and in that fight he needs a partner to get him to places and people that only a vampire can.
***
Chapter One - Chapter Two - Chapter Three - Chapter Four - Chapter Five - Chapter Six - Chapter Seven - Chapter Eight - Chapter Nine - Chapter Ten - Epilogue
***
Changmin was waiting for Zhou Mi outside of the Choi residence when Zhou Mi climbed out of the carriage. The note had arrived from Sooyoung not an hour before, hinting at information that Changmin had so recently written to Zhou Mi of as well - rumors of another storehouse and how to proceed. He hadn’t forgotten the note Changmin had sent on Kyuhyun’s letterhead, but in the succeeding days it had not been forefront either, especially with Kyuhyun waiting for him at home. Their home.
“Did Sooyoung call for you?” Zhou Mi asked.
“Of a sort. Apparently she agreed he I should be here, since it was my information. Even then she won’t let me in without a human chaperone.” And Changmin scowled as Zhou Mi smirked. “Yes, I know, I should feel fortunate that I’m allowed in at all.”
“When your whole life is built around the protection of your family and others from perceived threats, it’s hard to change even for the trustworthy.”
“Did no one teach you to be afraid?”
“It would be arrogant if I said no. I had a good teacher to get any fear out of me,” Zhou Mi said.
Changmin laughed at the thought of Kyuhyun being a teacher of anything, and fell into step just behind Zhou Mi’s elbow.
Sooyoung rose to greet them, and Zhou Mi did not offer a hand, inclining his head in respect instead.
“You are welcome, gentlemen. This is the second time I have had a vampire in this home. It is proof of how urgent these matters are. Please, sit.”
They did, taking chairs near each other facing Sooyoung.
“Has there been no more information from the paperwork and books in the storehouse?” Zhou Mi asked.
“Some. Names. The humans we captured there have been more forthcoming. It is like piecing together a puzzle we have very little knowledge of. But speaking of that,” Sooyoung said. “How are you? To put down your experiences would be worthwhile for us.”
Zhou Mi did not mind to say, though it was not easy to contemplate at times. “The nightmares are surely the worst part. The weakness, that was a side effect, but the nightmares and terrors I had, it is no wonder the patients scream. I likely did as well, though I don’t remember it so much. But the images stay vivid with me, and I do still wake in terror even after the Euphoria is cleared from me.”
Sooyoung nodded, her face thoughtful. “I wish it wasn’t so. It’s a horrible side-effect that there seems to be no cure for. Still, for as ill as you were, you look well.”
“Thank you. I am much improved. Mostly thanks to Changmin.”
He nodded at Changmin and received a half smile in return.
“Yes, I’ve heard how he helped you. Though surely some of that is related to your return to your… To Kyuhyun.”
He appreciated her use of Kyuhyun’s name instead of the instinctual “vampire.” Though calling Kyuhyun his would never cease to amuse him.
“We are both very pleased to be together again,” Zhou Mi acknowledged. Though that was quite an understatement. “And he has certainly helped my recovery as well.”
Due to the teeth, in a very special way, though it was not something Zhou Mi could speak of to Sooyoung. Changmin’s lips curved a bit, likely from their shared secret of that particular knowledge. He wasn’t sure how Changmin would’ve stopped him if he’d decided to share the secret, but Zhou Mi was certain it wouldn’t have been pretty.
“I note he didn’t join you here this evening.”
“He had pressing business to attend to,” Zhou Mi said.
If pressing business was seeing that his home was ready for Zhou Mi’s belongings to be moved into, and prepared for a growing child, then yes. They had a slim few days with which to prepare before going to fetch Jinyong and they both intended for the house to be ready by their return. When Zhou Mi had asked Kyuhyun whether Zhou Mi should go alone to fetch Jinyong, Kyuhyun had baldly laughed at him. Apparently Zhou Mi would not get that far alone, and Zhou Mi had no objections to it. When Zhou Mi had left, Kyuhyun had been sorting through estimates from carpenters and muttering about hiring a cook.
They each had their strengths and Kyuhyun was clearly in the midst of one of his. Zhou Mi hadn’t been sad to leave Kyuhyun to it, and for Kyuhyun there would have been no benefit to having Zhou Mi there. That pleased him because they were each their own man and unwilling to give that up.
“So to the storehouse then,” Sooyoung said.
“It is a long game,” Changmin said. “I have two vampires, one of which has… We’ll say, questionable connections. No solid leads, but there’s a possibility of him working his way toward that end. Driving them further underground will hurt them, and us, but it also buys us time.”
“If we get several leaders,” Zhou Mi mused. “There’s a possibility to fragment it. We’ve been receiving angry and dismayed responses from at least half a dozen vampires who’ve pledged to stop the use of their blood and to spread awareness for vampires being bled by force. If the supply dries up, that too will be an advance.”
Sooyoung nodded, rising and skirting her desk. In her hand, a piece of paper that was offered to Zhou Mi. He unfolded it, curious, mouth parting as he read the numbers on it and looked up at her.
“For bribes, for nurses, for payment of vampires helping to cure diseases,” Sooyoung said. “Your Organization is not set up to fight, but you fight a different front. The Choi family can no longer ignore the evils outside of the punishment of rogue vampires. We’ll advance together, equally.”
Zhou Mi stood and held out his hand, as solemnly as he could to her. She took it, and they shook on it, a silent agreement.
“You’ll always know what we know,” Zhou Mi pledged. “I have not been scared from helping, but for the sake of my…family, I am going to focus on recovery efforts with the Organization.”
Sooyoung nodded, smiling. “Yes, I understand.”
“And you have the support of many vampires as well,” Changmin said, but he made no gesture to reach out. He likely still remembered the slap.
“You should be liaison,” Sooyoung said to Changmin, and surprised both of them. “A vampire’s insight could be useful, and you have a connection to Zhou Mi already. You can do what he cannot.”
It was the truth, and though Changmin had been dragged into it unwillingly, he gave a short nod. “I can do that.”
When they were finished with the logistics of their information sharing, Changmin was the first out the door, and he turned to Zhou Mi on the sidewalk.
“Is Kyuhyun still angry with me?”
“That you should ask him yourself,” Zhou Mi said, unwilling to stand between two people who’d known each other for longer than he’d been alive. Though still, it wasn’t in him to leave Changmin totally in the dark. “We will soon be going to the country to fetch Jinyong. When we return, you should call on him.”
There was anger, hurt, betrayal. But some of that could be soothed. A new footing found, perhaps.
And Zhou Mi held out his hand and shook Changmin’s hand on that as well.
***
The journey to Changmin’s country home was long and tiring, the days trapped in the carriage in perpetual motion - and in perpetual dark. Kyuhyun could close himself up so that Zhou Mi could get a little light to read but at night there was little enough relief from it but for the moon that wasn’t often eager to assist them. It was good that they liked each other, though that much time together could’ve been a strain on anyone. When he voiced that aloud, he got muffled snorts against his neck. They did not even bother to stop along the way, the drivers swapping shifts and changing horses as they could. Once they were in motion, he wanted nothing to delay them. The only time they truly stopped was in the town nearest Changmin’s country home, waiting for the sun to fall so that Kyuhyun would be awake for their arrival.
“I am going to be glad not to be in a moving conveyance,” Kyuhyun muttered, and Zhou Mi kissed his temple. They would take it much slower on their return trip, having two carriages and Jinyong to think of.
“Will the world feel like it’s still moving when we stop?” Zhou Mi asked, teasing.
“You’re lucky I sleep well no matter what. We’ll have our own bed when we arrive.”
Zhou Mi, for one, was looking forward to it.
But not more than he was looking forward to seeing Jinyong. A letter had preceded them, so Victoria to prepare Jinyong for their arrival. It was upheaval enough, but as the carriage made its way up the long driveway, Kyuhyun squeezed Zhou Mi’s arm.
“I’m going to let you go in first,” Kyuhyun said.
And when Zhou Mi opened his mouth to protest, Kyuhyun shook his head. “We don’t know if his fear of vampires lingers, and I would rather not taint his first happiness of seeing you. I’ll wait by the door for when you think he’s ready.”
It was obvious it was something that Kyuhyun had been thinking of, so Zhou Mi didn’t argue. He didn’t offer up any pretty sentiments, either, because he knew he could not promise that Jinyong would lose his fear of vampires - of Kyuhyun in particular. But there was time, and there was love, and they had enough of both, he thought as he stroked the soft toy he balanced on his leg. Jinyong had good, happy memories of Kyuhyun, and Zhou Mi was counting on those and Jinyong’s letters. Remembering Jinyong’s concern at Kyuhyun being hurt, that had him grasping Kyuhyun’s hand. He would believe for the both of them.
And even with the stretching he had done before, he was stiff climbing down out of the carriage. Kyuhyun was at his heels, hand on Zhou Mi’s back as they swept up the front entrance and were greeted by the staff.
“Jinyong and Victoria?” Zhou Mi asked.
“This way, sir.”
“Go,” Kyuhyun whispered to him.
And Zhou Mi’s eyes were all for Jinyong when he walked into the room he was led to. Jinyong sat at a low table, tongue between his teeth as he scribbled furiously on paper laid out in front of him. Victoria saw him first, her hand on Jinyong’s shoulder.
Zhou Mi’s heart clutched when Jinyong gasped, all but leaping out of the chair and racing toward him. But he stopped several steps away, staring up at Zhou Mi as though he wasn’t real. Zhou Mi smiled, crouching and holding out something so very familiar to both of them.
“I brought the bear,” Zhou Mi said, holding out the bear Jinyong had left with him before going into the country. “I kept him safe for you.”
“Zhou Mi,” Jinyong sobbed, and threw himself into Zhou Mi’s arms. Zhou Mi’s eyes closed, gripping Jinyong as tight as he dared and trying to swallow the tears that threatened to choke him.
“Oh my sweet boy,” Zhou Mi crooned, rocking Jinyong back and forth. “I’m so sorry it took so long. But I will do everything I can to make sure we stay together now.”
“I can stay with you?” Jinyong wavered.
“Yes. This time we’ll be safe together.”
Jinyong pulled back and they grinned at each other, a bit damp in the eye, both of them. Zhou Mi stroked Jinyong’s soft hair and was so glad he hadn’t delayed. Time was so fleeting, and too precious. A thought seemed to occur to Jinyong, clutching the bear up to his neck.
“Kyuhyun?” Jinyong asked, staring at Zhou Mi with wet, worried eyes.
“He’s here,” Zhou Mi said, and his voice nearly cracked to say it. “Kyuhyun?”
Zhou Mi turned to look over his shoulder, and Jinyong looked with him, gasping again as Kyuhyun came out from behind the door and crouched beside Zhou Mi. He waited, wondering how Jinyong would respond.
“Zhou Mi’s letters before said you were going away,” Jinyong said. And even if the last letter had said differently, Zhou Mi could understand why Jinyong worried.
“Not anymore,” Kyuhyun said, stopping just short of extending his hand. “We’ve come to take you home, to my home. All three of us will stay there. And your nanny.”
Zhou Mi could feel the trembles start under his hand on Jinyong’s back. But what happened next surprised even him: when Jinyong lunged for Kyuhyun’s neck and hugged him, sending him sprawling on his backside.
And Kyuhyun looked to him, eyes wide and startled as though he wondered what he was supposed to do with the child mewling into his shoulder.
“Hug him,” Zhou Mi breathed, steadying Kyuhyun.
And it started with an awkward pat to Jinyong’s back, but Kyuhyun did. Jinyong wasn’t afraid, wasn’t thinking Kyuhyun would bite him. Instead of wallowing in that relief, Zhou Mi did what he wanted to do and enfolded them both, pressing a kiss against Jinyong’s hair.
“We’re finally together,” Zhou Mi said, and Jinyong nodded vigorously. “We’ll stay here a few days and then travel back together to Kyuhyun’s- to our home.”
Just sitting there, holding Jinyong gave Zhou Mi a chance to look up, to greet Victoria with a wave at least. She had done so well looking after Jinyong, and Jinyong looked so strong, so much better than he had when he had left. He could have sat there forever, cradling both Jinyong and Kyuhyun close, but Jinyong, of the three of them, had much more energy.
“I can show you my books!” Jinyong said with excitement, standing and nearly knocking Zhou Mi in the head. He raced for the table where various things were stacked. “I have new clothes. I have a little sailboat for my bath, too!”
Zhou Mi and Kyuhyun both made appropriately impressed noises, leaning in against each other.
“And we can play with my puppy,” Jinyong said, making a great pile of the books in front of him.
Kyuhyun turned his head and Zhou Mi blinked at him.
“He has a puppy?”
“Did I not tell you?” Zhou Mi asked cautiously. “It’s small, or so Victoria wrote.”
Zhou Mi might have been worried but for the brief but intense elbow battle that they waged.
“You’ll be in charge of any messes,” Kyuhyun said, resigned to the point where he might as well have been assigning himself to death.
But Zhou Mi still kissed his cheek, pleased as Kyuhyun leaned into him again.
***
Letting Jinyong sleep in their bed while at Changmin’s country home was an indulgence, not something intended to create a habit. The first night, at least, Jinyong would get to be assured that they would not sneak off in the middle of the night and leave him. Kyuhyun accepted the addition with grace, helped by the fact they’d found a discreet location for Kyuhyun to feed before Jinyong was ready to sleep. It was Jinyong’s time to heal even more than they already had. Once back in the city, Jinyong would have his own room, and would be secure in knowing he belonged there.
And there was a fourth occupant of the room.
“No dog on the bed,” Kyuhyun said, heading that off immediately. “Only people.”
“He sleeps on my bed,” Jinyong protested. “He’ll get lonely.”
Kyuhyun and Jinyong stared at each other, and Zhou Mi stayed silent. He wasn’t going to get into the middle of that.
“Would you rather sleep in your bed then?” Kyuhyun asked.
Jinyong thought a moment. “No?”
“Then the dog will manage on the floor tonight,” Kyuhyun said, and leveraged himself out of bed. “I’ll make him a nest out of my shirt.”
Jinyong giggled against Zhou Mi’s arm. “Dogs don’t sleep in nests.”
“Puppies do,” Zhou Mi said. “Sometimes little boys.”
Zhou Mi was touched that Kyuhyun was making a place for the pup to sleep, and amused at his orders for the dog to stay there. Jinyong was squeezing his fingers, waiting for Kyuhyun to get back in bed so they could sleep. Or wrestle, he wasn’t sure, since it seemed that Kyuhyun and Jinyong were just as prone to that as Jinyong and his puppy were.
“The dog just peed on my leg,” Kyuhyun said, sounding very resigned.
There was nothing for Zhou Mi to do but hug Jinyong and laugh.
But when Jinyong was asleep, and Kyuhyun was back in bed, Zhou Mi reached for him. Even with a child sprawled between them, he did not accept that distance. Kyuhyun nipped the knuckles on Zhou Mi’s extended hand first, before resting his face against it. Kyuhyun read by the light and Zhou Mi napped with Jinyong against him, tired from the journey. Jinyong was a restless sleeper and Kyuhyun was not. Zhou Mi woke at one point to find both of Jinyong’s legs over Kyuhyun’s side, his head on Zhou Mi’s ribs. It took a little straightening but Jinyong was still fast asleep, and Zhou Mi chuckled as he got some more well-deserved rest.
***
Zhou Mi wasn’t sure who was more pleased to be back in town, Kyuhyun or Jinyong. Jinyong and the puppy made no delay in getting acquainted with every room and corner. Though, Kyuhyun had taken Jinyong’s hand and given him the tour including the areas he was supposed to keep out of. Zhou Mi had stayed back and heard a number of, “And Zhou Mi says so, too,” as though Kyuhyun was using him as backup. It made him laugh and snuggle Jinyong’s pup, who was still learning where not to relieve himself to Kyuhyun’s long-suffering sighs.
But there was so much more to being back than that. Even with Sooyoung and the Choi family’s significant contribution, money would always be needed to fund care. Their first night back alone Zhou Mi spent hours poring over his incoming letters and writing responses until Kyuhyun had tickled him out of his chair for a well-deserved bite and rest.
His desk was back, facing Kyuhyun’s in the library. That was the most significant thing to him, more so even than his clothes in Kyuhyun’s room, the new cook, and Jinyong’s new school/playroom. It was Kyuhyun’s way of keeping him close, in a different way than it had been at the start. The desk had been there because Kyuhyun had wanted to make sure Zhou Mi honored his agreement, and to keep an eye on him for safety. Or maybe, just to keep an eye on him. It was ease, familiarity, being able to look up and share a joke, a sly look, a wink. Part of their downfall to start with, not that he was counting it against them.
“We should start interviewing tutors for Jinyong,” Kyuhyun said, leaning back into his office chair and mussing up his already-messy hair from just that same action of his hand. “Victoria is more than qualified to continue his education, but in some areas it should be expanded.”
Zhou Mi thought on that a moment, nodding. They’d already discussed and dismissed the idea of Jinyong going to a local school, for his own safety.
“Agreed. There’s another man in the Organization with a boy about Jinyong’s age, so I’ll be able to set up a time for them to get together and play. Perhaps he’ll also have some suggestions on tutors.”
There were so many things in motion, like the most healthy of the Euphoria patients being moved into Zhou Mi’s former home, and the move of Jinyong’s mother and siblings into a new home in the sheep wards. With Jinyong’s father in custody, there had been no one to help, and even if Jinyong’s mother had not sold him, he had wanted there to be no hard choices for her regarding herself and her children. Jinyong had been given the choice, would always have the choice between his family or Zhou Mi, but he would see Jinyong’s siblings safe as well, and fed. Without a man to drink and gamble away the funds, Zhou Mi suspected that the family would be much better off in all ways.
Zhou Mi wanted Jinyong to know he was secure in his place, but also to know that in coming to live with Zhou Mi, his family hadn’t been abandoned. In the move, they’d learned Jinyong’s birthday, so the preparations were already underway on that day to pack up food, books, and toys, and visit Jinyong’s siblings. Jinyong’s face had fairly shined with it, so secure on Kyuhyun’s lap as they wrote out the list together.
“What sweet thing are you thinking about now?” Kyuhyun asked, having gotten up to stand beside him. It made Zhou Mi stand as well.
“So obvious?” Zhou Mi wondered, and Kyuhyun’s eyebrows rose as though to tell him so. “Jinyong’s birthday. How sweet he is.”
“He is,” Kyuhyun agreed. “And is your hand about done for the evening?”
Never completely done, as well they both knew.
“I sent off a message to Changmin about our progress so he can pass it along to Sooyoung.”
Kyuhyun laughed, delighted. “Sometimes I wonder if he thinks she hit him with some kind of thrall of her own to get him to agree to all of this. But it’s good for him, keeps him out of trouble.”
Changmin showing up with a thick encyclopedia of sharks for Jinyong had been more likely to soften Zhou Mi’s heart than Kyuhyun’s, but there was a cautious kind of truce there. Maybe it was stubbornness keeping them from fully reconciling more than anything, but he was going to support Kyuhyun through it - especially since he knew it had no bearing on Kyuhyun’s feelings for Zhou Mi.
He smoothed down Kyuhyun’s hair, tweaked at the loose collar with no neck cloth whatsoever. Love suited Kyuhyun, content on every feature. His vampire. And he nearly chuckled to himself to think it.
“Time for bed, now that you’ve conquered the city by pen alone,” Kyuhyun murmured.
Zhou Mi kissed Kyuhyun’s neck, and breathed, content. They both knew it wasn’t just with a pen.
And not alone.
***
***
(Thank all you lovelies for reading~ <3)