[fic] Pirates of the Cassiopeia 3/7
Title: Pirates of the Cassiopeia
Pairings: YunJae
Rating: NC-17
Genre: adventure, romance, smut
Chapters: 3/7
Summary: Jaejoong rescues Yunho from a sinking ship, planning to turn him into a pirate but gets wrapped up in an adventure filled with secrets, inhuman power and a little bit of love.
A/N: I'm quite happy with the pictures for this chapter, I hope you guys will like them too! *__* Have fun reading and as always, comments are much appreciated~ <3
Chapter 3
Jaejoong slept for three whole days. Yunho was so worried he could barely leave Jaejoong's bedside to take care of his needs or get food from the kitchen, for Jaejoong seemed so fragile Yunho was sure he would pass during the few minutes Yunho wasn't there with him. The other pirates had told him Jaejoong would wake up, he always had, but Yunho didn't understand how they could be so sure when what Jaejoong had done clearly hadn't been normal. Normal men didn't have such powers, normal men couldn't move ships or run away from a hurricane just like that. Would Jaejoong tell him what that had been if he were to wake up? How had Jaejoong learned to do such things?
Four times during those few days Jaejoong opened his eyes, mumbled something incoherent and then lost consciousness again. He didn't seem to be aware of the world around him, he didn't answer when Yunho spoke nor did he react when Yunho squeezed his hand. The color of his skin had gradually returned to normal and the freckles on his skin reappeared, making him look more alive again. Yunho used a wet cloth to wipe his forehead and his face and neck, hoping to make Jaejoong feel at least slightly better as the other was clearly in pain. His shallow breathing and furrowed eyebrows worried Yunho, too.
When Jaejoong finally did wake up, Yunho was sitting by the bed and staring idly out of the window. Jaejoong made a choked sound, causing Yunho to look down at him to find out whether he was again mumbling in his sleep or if he was in fact really awake. Jaejoong's eyes were open, he was staring at Yunho and for a brief moment, Yunho saw a pleased, slightly surprised expression on his face before Jaejoong bent over and threw up in an empty water bucket by the bed. Yunho was at his side instantly, held the bucket for him and kept Jaejoong's hair out of the way as the smaller man emptied the remaining contents of his stomach.
"There you go," Yunho muttered calmly while caressing the back of Jaejoong's neck, "Let it all out."
Jaejoong layed back down on the bed, shaking fiercely, as Yunho lowered the bucket on the floor and then turned to look at the other. He tried Jaejoong's forehead with the palm of his hand to check the temperature of his skin and as it had returned to normal and was no longer emitting coldness, Yunho gave him a little relieved smile.
"You're going to be alright," he assured, brushing the hair out of Jaejoong's eyes again and letting his fingertips briefly brush the side of his cheek, "Don't you worry."
"I'm fine," Jaejoong croaked even though he clearly still wasn't feeling well, "Just... Thirsty..."
"I can get you something to drink," Yunho said but Jaejoong shook his head, looking alarmed.
"Don't go," he whimpered, eyes filled with distress, "Don't leave me alone."
"But you're thirsty-"
"I'm fine."
"I should let the Captain know you're awake," Yunho tried to reason but Jaejoong had now wrapped his fingers around Yunho's wrist needily.
"Don't tell him yet," Jaejoong said weakly, tugging Yunho's wrist with all the strength left in his body, "I want to stay here, he might make me do it again if he knows I'm awake."
"I won't speak to him, don't worry," Yunho agreed immediately just to make the panicked expression leave Jaejoong's beautiful face - he wasn't used to seeing the other young man so weak and it was starting to freak him out. "Just tell me what to do to make you feel better."
Jaejoong was quiet for a moment, obviously wanting to say something but failing to gather the courage to actually open his mouth. Looking apprehensive, Jaejoong let go of Yunho's wrist and raised both of his arms to wrap them behind Yunho's neck instead. He turned his face away as he pulled Yunho closer, trying to hide being embarrassed, but Yunho didn't feel the need to ask any questions. There was no shame in wanting to be held. Wrapping his arms around the smaller man's waist, Yunho lied down next to Jaejoong on the bed and pulled him close against his chest.
Jaejoong melted against his body like wax, his face hidden in the fabric of Yunho's shirt, still shaking slightly. Yunho was shaking too - it felt so nice to be close to Jaejoong - but tried to push those feelings back to be able to stay calm. He kept petting Jaejoong's hair, running his fingers through the silky strands of blond, wishing he had the power to make Jaejoong healthy again.
They stayed like that for what felt like hours. Yunho could tell that Jaejoong wasn't sleeping from the way his breathing hitched every time Yunho pulled him closer. Every once in a while he nuzzled his face against Yunho's chest, pushed his leg between Yunho's thighs, and let out a content sigh. It took all of Yunho's will power not to take a hold of Jaejoong's neck and tilt his head back for a kiss. He felt bad for even thinking of such things when Jaejoong still seemed so weak he would most likely break if Yunho even decided to roll them over and lie on top of him. He was starting to miss the Jaejoong that had punched him in the face when Yunho had first kissed him - that Jaejoong had been so full of fire and life it had made Yunho feel like a weakling.
Jaejoong's fingers were now playing with the neckline of Yunho's shirt. His forefinger circled around the curve of Yunho's pec playfully, drew invisible patterns down the length of Yunho's collarbone and even grazed his Adam's apple with the tips of his fingers. Knowing it meant Jaejoong was most definitely going to get better, Yunho was starting to feel his own body betray him no matter how much he tried to fight back. He swallowed thickly, determinedly staring at the roof above their heads as Jaejoong's thigh pushed in further between his legs. Yunho couldn't take it anymore, he pulled back enough to look down at the other young man. Jaejoong was already looking back at him, clearly pleased with himself with a rosy hue decorating his cheeks.
"You... You should get something to eat," Yunho found himself stuttering as he sat up in bed and pulled the blanket up to cover Jaejoong better - he didn't want to see anything that would make his body act on its own, "I... I... I can fetch you something from the kitchen."
"Alright," he agreed, looking so cute and small in the bed Yunho felt a slightly painful sting in his chest for having to get up. The images of the other night when Jaejoong had been in his lap, their mouths plastered together suddenly filled his mind - Yunho had to physically drag his eyes away and turn around to leave the room. He hurried to the kitchen and grabbed whatever he needed while trying to keep his mind blissfully empty. It would have been easier if he hadn't yet known the sweet taste of Jaejoong's lips. It was so difficult but he would have to concentrate only on making sure Jaejoong no longer felt ill.
When Yunho returned to Jaejoong's cabin, he found the other boy sound asleep again. His mouth was parted cutely, and one of his hands was resting comfortably on the pillow next to his head. Feeling relieved, Yunho placed the food and the water on the night stand and took a seat from the chair in front of Jaejoong's desk to keep some distance between them - just in case he happened to suddenly lose control.
Jaejoong had the appetite of a bear once he woke up from his nap. He gobbled the piece of bread, the slightly cold bowl of porridge and the apple Yunho had brought him from the kitchen and drank the water as well. Jaejoong no longer felt like he needed to vomit. In fact, he was feeling much better than usual now that he had someone there to take care of him. While he had slept, Yunho had cleaned the room and replaced the bucket on the floor with a clean one had Jaejoong happened to throw up again. He had also somehow managed to change the linen on Jaejoong's bed while he had been asleep and even brought a clean set of clothes for Jaejoong to change into. The shirt he had apparently been wearing for the past few days felt sticky with cold sweat.
"Do you want more food?" Yunho asked him from the chair where he was seated, a book in his lap, "You were out for so long..."
"I'm fine," said Jaejoong while sliding a hand underneath the fabric of his shirt and rubbing his very flat stomach with his palm, "I can't eat any more or my stomach's going to burst."
"Have you heard those stories about men who had been trapped on an island with no food who ate themselves to death after being rescued?" Yunho asked him nonchalantly, "You shouldn't over do it."
"I won't," Jaejoong agreed, eyes never leaving the other boy. Why was he sitting on the chair when they normally sat together on the bed? Why hadn't he asked any questions about what had happened? Yunho must have been about to explode from curiosity while Jaejoong had been unconscious for days.
"The other pirates..." he started, "Did they tell you anything about me?"
"They told me you would wake up eventually," Yunho replied, closing the book he had been flipping through, "But I didn't believe them. Your skin went all blueish... You looked like a dead man. Like you had just drowned or something."
"I'm assuming you want to know what it was all about," Jaejoong said but Yunho shook his head.
"You don't have to if you don't want to tell me," Yunho sounded unsure as if he was afraid he was going to offend Jaejoong, "I told you I have secrets, no-one's forcing you to tell me yours."
"My mother was a witch," Jaejoong told him, completely ignoring what Yunho had just said, "She gave me this power."
"And what power is it exactly?" Yunho asked slowly, the tone of his voice filled with concealed curiosity. Even at a time like this Jaejoong couldn't help but admire Yunho's good manners.
"I can get this ship through any storm, any shoal or any obstacle that might come to mind," Jaejoong continued to explain, knowing he could trust Yunho with his secret, "That's what makes me the most valuable thing on this ship."
Yunho's expression remained neutral as he listened to Jaejoong's story.
"My father isn't a good man. He forced my mother to put this power into me, he needed something like me to become greater than any other pirate. To make Cassiopeia stronger than any other ship. My mother died while pouring this power into me."
"You've known how to do this all your life?"
"At first they thought it hadn't worked, I didn't show any signs until I turned eight. That's when it started bursting out of me - as I got older I learned how to control it," Jaejoong continued, threw his legs over the side of the bed to sit properly while facing Yunho.
"How could you ever learn to control such a thing by yourself?" Yunho asked, voice filled with both amazement and disbelief. Jaejoong shrugged.
"I just did," he said, "That is why the Captain insists on keeping me safe on this ship - I can't go out and fight like the other crew members. I can't go out to cities because the people who know about me could trap me and make me use my powers to their benefit. I would much rather stay here and at least be able to leave my room whenever I want to than be locked in a cell until they need me."
"But you become weak whenever you do it?" Yunho confirmed, eyebrows raised in question, "You become so sick you almost die?"
"Not always," the other shook his head, "It's just that the size of this ship is so big... It takes every bit of my strenght to move it. I can move smaller ships just fine. It might also be because I don't want to do it, I hate that they force me to sort out their problems."
"The Captain doesn't care about your well being at all!" Yunho suddenly exclaimed, getting angry, "You should have seen how he... After you fell... He acted like it was no big deal."
"It isn't a big deal to them, I'm just like a compass... A treasure map... An item they can use to their heart's content."
"That's not fair!" Yunho stood up and started to pace around the room, "What happens when one day you're not going to wake up? What happens if you stay asleep forever?"
"They're just going to have to find someone other like me," Jaejoong turned his gaze away, trying to hide the pleased smile that Yunho's anger had caused. His heart felt wonderfully warm even though he still lacked the strength in his limbs to even stand up properly. Did Yunho like him?
"But there won't be anyone like you!" Yunho continued to rant before pausing to stand in front of the other boy, "Have you ever heard about other kids who can do the things you can do? I sure haven't - I'm certain you're the only one."
"The world is a much more marvelous place than you think," Jaejoong leaned back on his hands and watched Yunho with growing delight, "Nothing in this world is irreplaceable."
"There won't be another you," Yunho huffed as he sat down next to Jaejoong on the bed, staring at the wooden floor, "There's only one you."
"Well... That is true," the smaller man agreed, unable to stop himself from smiling at Yunho being so upset. Jaejoong looked at Yunho's beautiful hands, how he had crossed his long fingers in discomfort, the way the muscles in his jaw appeared to be tense.
"How long do you think we can get away with you hiding in here?" Yunho turned to face him, looking very serious.
"A few more days I'm sure," Jaejoong replied, still unable to stop smiling, "At first we had to hide you but now it seems like the roles are reversed."
"I'm not going to let them drag you out to do that again," Yunho vowed, "You didn't see yourself... How you fell... It really scared me."
"Eventually you're going to have to."
"I won't, they can't keep-"
"Yunho," Jaejoong interrupted, not wanting the other man to keep riling himself up even though it did secretly please him, "Could you read to me again? We didn't finish the book."
For a moment Yunho looked apprehensive.
"Fine," he said after a moment of consideration, "But you should change out of those clothes, you were sweating like mad and we wouldn't want you to get a cold or anything because of that."
"Of course," agreed Jaejoong while starting to unbutton his shirt. His fingers felt stiff and didn't quite do the job but Yunho had stood up and turned around to avoid looking at him. Jaejoong watched him rummage through the things on his desk looking for the book with a purple cover and keeping his back to Jaejoong.
He pulled the shirt over his head and took of the pants he wore before reaching over to the pile of clothes Yunho had left on the bed earlier. The shirt was a comfortable, loose knit Jaejoong often wore, and the pants were made of soft flax fabric. Getting the shirt on was easy, putting his feet through the pants was easy too, but having to get up from the bed proved to be a bit more difficult. Jaejoong stood up on his shaky legs and pulled them up, almost loosing his footing in the process. Without managing to grasp what was going on, Yunho was already at his side, keeping him up with a pair of firm hands on his hips.
Yunho raised the hem of Jaejoong's shirt to tuck it inside his pants for him and Jaejoong placed his hands over Yunho's chest in need for some support. Suddenly aware of their height difference, Jaejoong looked up to meet Yunho's eyes but the other boy wasn't looking at him. His eyes were glued somewhere around Jaejoong's midsection, watching his own hands gather the fabric of Jaejoong's shirt and hide it beneath the waistband of his pants. The movement of Yunho's hands slowed down noticeably as they got to Jaejoong's backside. His fingertips slid into Jaejoong's pants for a bit too long to be considered completely innocent. They grazed over the naked skin of his lower back, then starting to play with the waistband of the underwear Jaejoong was wearing underneath his clothes. Breath got caught in Jaejoong's throat as he did nothing to stop Yunho's curious fingers.
He felt both of Yunho's hands slide under the fabric of his shirt, lifting it aside and grabbing a hold of Jaejoong's narrow hips with his open palms. Yunho's thumbs caressed the curve of his stomach, dipping into his pants - this time from the front - and feeling the softness of his skin. Jaejoong wasn't sure when he had looked away from Yunho's face to observe whatever his hands were doing, but suddenly, felt Yunho's nose bump against his cheekbone - lips close enough to capture his in a kiss. Jaejoong couldn't help it, he closed his eyes and turned his head to the side to brush his lips against Yunho's. Yunho didn't kiss him - he wrapped his arms around Jaejoong's waist under his shirt, holding him tighter, and just stayed still, breathing getting faster with every intake of air.
"The book... We should..." he mumbled with his eyes shut, clearly not wanting to pull away as Jaejoong stood up on his toes and closed his lips around Yunho's lower lip. Drawing it into his mouth, Jaejoong scraped the inner skin of Yunho's lip with his teeth, tongue coming out to poke it playfully.
Yunho's tongue was in his mouth within seconds. Tilting his head back, Jaejoong let Yunho support most of his weight as their mouths moved together without sound. Yunho's kiss was full of pent up energy like he had been thinking of nothing but kissing him during the days Jaejoong had been out of it. The hands underneath his shirt clung to the skin of his lower back, groping it excitedly, but never going places that would be inappropriate to touch just yet. With the touch of Yunho's lips Jaejoong suddenly didn't feel sick at all anymore. He didn't care what was proper - he had never been taught respectable mannors - and so, Jaejoong had no problem in lowering his hands to Yunho's belt and tugging on it to get him closer.
That seemed to do it. With a swift motion, Yunho had swept Jaejoong off his feet, somehow lowered him on the bed with complete ease and finally - lay his body down on top of the blonde. The kiss intensified, both trying to devour each other's lips with determination, tongues and teeth clashing in the heat of the moment. Even though Jaejoong had been expecting it, his stomach still made a giant back flip when he felt the hardness inside Yunho's pants, pressed up between their bodies and firmly against his thigh. It was the first time Jaejoong let out an unintended moan.
"I... I..." Yunho broke off for a moment to speak, "I really want to take off your clothes."
Jaejoong couldn't get himself to say anything and only nodded. He sneaked a hand between their bodies and pulled up the shirt he had just put on to reveal the pale curve of his stomach, slowly sliding it up all the way to his chest. Yunho buried his face into the crook of Jaejoong's neck and groaned. His fingertips flew across Jaejoong's skin, barely even touching, and his lips found their way to the side of Jaejoong's chin, kissing it languidly.
"Feel me," Jaejoong whispered, searching one of Yunho's hands and guiding it down to the front of his pants, pressing down on Yunho's knuckles to keep it where he wanted. Yunho groaned again, automatically cupping the bulge in Jaejoong's pants, hips making a smooth thrust against the smaller man's body.
"Ah-" Jaejoong let out the tiniest sound, eyelashes fluttering in pleasure as Yunho's hips made another pleasurable motion. He didn't know exactly what Yunho was doing, he didn't even know how far it could go - but Yunho stopped as abruptly as it had all started.
He rolled over to the bed next to Jaejoong, lied on his back - chest heavy with accelerated breathing - and stared at the roof above them in an attempt to calm himself down. Jaejoong was gasping as well, feeling the toll the use of his powers had took on his body once again now that Yunho was no longer kissing him. He hadn't done anything wrong - that Jaejoong was sure of - as Yunho was clearly suffering from some sort of mental battle taking place inside his head. Why had he stopped it?
"Have you... Have you ever been with anyone?" he asked, completely out of breath as Jaejoong sought Yunho's hand to intertwine their fingers like the first night they had slept together in the same bed.
"Um," Jaejoong murmured, unsure of what to reply, "No. I guess."
"You guess?"
"Um..."
"Jae... Have you ever been made love to?" Yunho spoke more directly, causing Jaejoong to flush bright red. He ignored the question, sat up in bed, grabbed the book Yunho had somewhere along the way placed on the night stand and gave it to the other man to change the topic. Wiggling closer to Yunho on the bed while pulling the blanket up to cover them, Jaejoong adjusted the other young man's arm to be able to lie comfortably tucked under his armpit.
Yunho didn't say anything about the awkward change of subject. He opened the book and started to read out loud, while Jaejoong spent all that time thinking about what Yunho had just asked him. He hadn't been made love to - he hadn't even been kissed before Yunho - but he sure as hell wanted to find out what it meant, especially if it would be with Yunho. Was it embarrassing not to know how it would even work? Would Yunho laugh at him if he told?
"Start again," Jaejoong interrupted Yunho's reading, "I wasn't listening."
Yunho let out a bright laugh that reminded Jaejoong of a dog barking, turned back the pages and started again from the part they had left it the last time. Snuggling closer, Jaejoong closed his eyes and decided to let Yunho's voice lull him back to sleep for now.
Three days later Yunho finally saw the shore again. It seemed like they had been sailing for a lifetime and therefore the view of a clearly deserted island was a welcome change. He and Jaejoong sat on Jaejoong's bed, observing the nearing land out of his cabin window with growing interest. It wasn't a particularly large island, probably a day's trip to walk around the entire thing, and looked like no man had ever stepped on the beach of white sand. Jaejoong had practically pressed his nose to the window, so excited he was, that his already large eyes were even wider than usual. The shade of his skin had returned to normal shortly after waking up and not a single trace of the strange sickness was any longer visible.
Yunho had worried so much he wouldn't have been surprised to find out his hair had turned grey. He hadn't been worried because of what the Captain had said - heck, Yunho didn't care at all about the man - but because he had started to really care about the other boy. Yunho admired Jaejoong's bravery and even liked the fact that he severely lacked both patience and self control - which Yunho found to be quite entertaining.
"Why are we stopping here?" Yunho asked as he could no longer surpress the curiosity, "It's clearly deserted, what's here to rob?"
Jaejoong looked around as if making sure nobody had suddenly opened the door to his cabin before he replied.
"We hid at least a dozen chests here," he whispered, "It was no use carrying them around before we make a stop at a pirate harbor. We're probably here to dig them up and take them with us again."
"Oh," Yunho said, eyeing the island eagerly, "How I wish we could step on land. I feel like my feet haven't felt steady ground in months. I'm not sure I can even walk without swaying anymore."
"I want to go out too," Jaejoong gave him an excited smile, "Do you think we could sneak out while all the crew is away?"
"You tell me... How are you feeling?"
"You know I haven't felt sick in days," Jaejoong continued, looking more and more full of energy as he spoke, "I want to shoot something!"
Yunho laughed - both in relief because the other boy seemed to have recovered completely, as well as at Jaejoong's eagerness to go out and shoot bullets.
"Unfortunately I don't think there's anything on that island to shoot."
"Sure there is!" Jaejoong got up from the bed and walked over to his desk to open the first drawer, "Let's shoot coconuts and see which one of us gets the most. The winner gets a prize of some sort."
"That does sound like fun," Yunho admitted, watching the other boy lift a pistol out of his desk's drawer. It was old, with intrigue carvings and a smooth handle made of wood.
"You can't tell anyone if I give you this," he made Yunho swear before passing the heavy pistol into his hand, "Hide it in your pocket and don't let them see you have one."
"So, you've finally started to trust me?" Yunho grinned, feeling the high-class weapon in his hold before tucking it under his belt. He felt slightly more like himself now that he had something other than his fists to protect himself with.
"I'm pretty sure you're not trying to kill me," Jaejoong rolled his eyes, took a pistol for himself as well and then hurried back to the window, "Look! We're almost there!"
They pressed their noses to the window again and watched quietly as the pirates started lowering life boats to the water to be able to row to the shore.
"When we can no longer see them, we crawl out of the window and climb down the hull and then swim to the strand. The water isn't too deep here."
"How long are they going to be gone?"
"At least half a day," Jaejoong grinned, "We have plenty of time to shoot coconuts."
It was way harder to crawl out of the window than it had been to get into the ship. They shinned down the hull of the ship until they were low enough to drop into the water without making a huge splash. The water was almost turqoise, so clear they could see the fish swimming near the bottom, and so refreshing and cool Yunho kind of wanted to swim around and play in the gentle waves. But Jaejoong was already making his way to the shore like some kind of mermaid, diving in and appearing a few meters ahead of Yunho who was enjoying himself quite a lot. Before than he had expected, Yunho's boots dug into sand and he could wade his way to the beach where Jaejoong was already sitting pouring water out of his shoes.
"This is great," Yunho exhaled deeply, taking in the scent of the earth around them and also sat down to empty the water out of his boots that had sucked in quite a bit. It was nice looking at the ship from a bit of a distance - it looked even more magnificent with its red sails and masts tall enough to reach the sky. He turned to look at Jaejoong who was already looking at him.
"It's nice to see you in proper daylight," he told, eyes twinkling from the sparkly ocean reflected in them.
"You don't look too bad either," Yunho complimented, whole-heartedly enjoying seeing Jaejoong's light freckles from up close. The color of his eyes looked lighter, a more milky brown in direct sunlight and even his hair looked silkier than usual.
Jaejoong pushed himself up, brushed away some sand out of his wet clothes and gave Yunho his hand to pull the taller man up as well. He intertwined their fingers smoothly, like it was no big deal at all and started tugging on Yunho's hand to make him move.
"Come on now, we have a lot of things to do!" he urged Yunho on, pulling him along and starting to walk towards the palm trees further in the distance. "There's a fountain we can swim in and drink from, you have to try it! And I have to show you this cave I found the last time we were here! And there are these flowers, you've got to smell them!"
"Let's do it all," Yunho agreed, not really listening as Jaejoong's hand in his was kind of distracting him at the moment.
The Captain of the pirate ship Cassiopeia stood at the front deck, admiring the view of the island before him. They had finished digging up the hidden valuables much faster than he had expected - the sun was still shining which meant they could head towards their next destination earlier. There was enough cargo to make a brief stop at a pirate harbor and for the crew to take a day's rest - the Captain knew how badly they needed it. They had been travelling for so long the crew was getting restless - the rum was nearly gone which meant there would be more fights. It couldn't do any harm for them to visit a brothel neither.
One of the helmsmen approached him, looking slightly afraid as the Captain layed eyes on him to listen to whatever he had to say.
"He's not here," the helmsman said, fidgeting with his hands nervously, "He must have snuck out while we weren't paying attention. The stowaway kid is gone too."
The Captain turned his eyes back to the island, jaw tense and shook his head in disapproval.
"We're leaving without him."
"But Captain, we can't leave the young Master-"
"We'll come back in a couple days," the Captain ordered, "That'll teach him a lesson not to run away again."
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Pairings: YunJae
Rating: NC-17
Genre: adventure, romance, smut
Chapters: 3/7
Summary: Jaejoong rescues Yunho from a sinking ship, planning to turn him into a pirate but gets wrapped up in an adventure filled with secrets, inhuman power and a little bit of love.
A/N: I'm quite happy with the pictures for this chapter, I hope you guys will like them too! *__* Have fun reading and as always, comments are much appreciated~ <3
Chapter 3
Jaejoong slept for three whole days. Yunho was so worried he could barely leave Jaejoong's bedside to take care of his needs or get food from the kitchen, for Jaejoong seemed so fragile Yunho was sure he would pass during the few minutes Yunho wasn't there with him. The other pirates had told him Jaejoong would wake up, he always had, but Yunho didn't understand how they could be so sure when what Jaejoong had done clearly hadn't been normal. Normal men didn't have such powers, normal men couldn't move ships or run away from a hurricane just like that. Would Jaejoong tell him what that had been if he were to wake up? How had Jaejoong learned to do such things?
Four times during those few days Jaejoong opened his eyes, mumbled something incoherent and then lost consciousness again. He didn't seem to be aware of the world around him, he didn't answer when Yunho spoke nor did he react when Yunho squeezed his hand. The color of his skin had gradually returned to normal and the freckles on his skin reappeared, making him look more alive again. Yunho used a wet cloth to wipe his forehead and his face and neck, hoping to make Jaejoong feel at least slightly better as the other was clearly in pain. His shallow breathing and furrowed eyebrows worried Yunho, too.
When Jaejoong finally did wake up, Yunho was sitting by the bed and staring idly out of the window. Jaejoong made a choked sound, causing Yunho to look down at him to find out whether he was again mumbling in his sleep or if he was in fact really awake. Jaejoong's eyes were open, he was staring at Yunho and for a brief moment, Yunho saw a pleased, slightly surprised expression on his face before Jaejoong bent over and threw up in an empty water bucket by the bed. Yunho was at his side instantly, held the bucket for him and kept Jaejoong's hair out of the way as the smaller man emptied the remaining contents of his stomach.
"There you go," Yunho muttered calmly while caressing the back of Jaejoong's neck, "Let it all out."
Jaejoong layed back down on the bed, shaking fiercely, as Yunho lowered the bucket on the floor and then turned to look at the other. He tried Jaejoong's forehead with the palm of his hand to check the temperature of his skin and as it had returned to normal and was no longer emitting coldness, Yunho gave him a little relieved smile.
"You're going to be alright," he assured, brushing the hair out of Jaejoong's eyes again and letting his fingertips briefly brush the side of his cheek, "Don't you worry."
"I'm fine," Jaejoong croaked even though he clearly still wasn't feeling well, "Just... Thirsty..."
"I can get you something to drink," Yunho said but Jaejoong shook his head, looking alarmed.
"Don't go," he whimpered, eyes filled with distress, "Don't leave me alone."
"But you're thirsty-"
"I'm fine."
"I should let the Captain know you're awake," Yunho tried to reason but Jaejoong had now wrapped his fingers around Yunho's wrist needily.
"Don't tell him yet," Jaejoong said weakly, tugging Yunho's wrist with all the strength left in his body, "I want to stay here, he might make me do it again if he knows I'm awake."
"I won't speak to him, don't worry," Yunho agreed immediately just to make the panicked expression leave Jaejoong's beautiful face - he wasn't used to seeing the other young man so weak and it was starting to freak him out. "Just tell me what to do to make you feel better."
Jaejoong was quiet for a moment, obviously wanting to say something but failing to gather the courage to actually open his mouth. Looking apprehensive, Jaejoong let go of Yunho's wrist and raised both of his arms to wrap them behind Yunho's neck instead. He turned his face away as he pulled Yunho closer, trying to hide being embarrassed, but Yunho didn't feel the need to ask any questions. There was no shame in wanting to be held. Wrapping his arms around the smaller man's waist, Yunho lied down next to Jaejoong on the bed and pulled him close against his chest.
Jaejoong melted against his body like wax, his face hidden in the fabric of Yunho's shirt, still shaking slightly. Yunho was shaking too - it felt so nice to be close to Jaejoong - but tried to push those feelings back to be able to stay calm. He kept petting Jaejoong's hair, running his fingers through the silky strands of blond, wishing he had the power to make Jaejoong healthy again.
They stayed like that for what felt like hours. Yunho could tell that Jaejoong wasn't sleeping from the way his breathing hitched every time Yunho pulled him closer. Every once in a while he nuzzled his face against Yunho's chest, pushed his leg between Yunho's thighs, and let out a content sigh. It took all of Yunho's will power not to take a hold of Jaejoong's neck and tilt his head back for a kiss. He felt bad for even thinking of such things when Jaejoong still seemed so weak he would most likely break if Yunho even decided to roll them over and lie on top of him. He was starting to miss the Jaejoong that had punched him in the face when Yunho had first kissed him - that Jaejoong had been so full of fire and life it had made Yunho feel like a weakling.
Jaejoong's fingers were now playing with the neckline of Yunho's shirt. His forefinger circled around the curve of Yunho's pec playfully, drew invisible patterns down the length of Yunho's collarbone and even grazed his Adam's apple with the tips of his fingers. Knowing it meant Jaejoong was most definitely going to get better, Yunho was starting to feel his own body betray him no matter how much he tried to fight back. He swallowed thickly, determinedly staring at the roof above their heads as Jaejoong's thigh pushed in further between his legs. Yunho couldn't take it anymore, he pulled back enough to look down at the other young man. Jaejoong was already looking back at him, clearly pleased with himself with a rosy hue decorating his cheeks.
"You... You should get something to eat," Yunho found himself stuttering as he sat up in bed and pulled the blanket up to cover Jaejoong better - he didn't want to see anything that would make his body act on its own, "I... I... I can fetch you something from the kitchen."
"Alright," he agreed, looking so cute and small in the bed Yunho felt a slightly painful sting in his chest for having to get up. The images of the other night when Jaejoong had been in his lap, their mouths plastered together suddenly filled his mind - Yunho had to physically drag his eyes away and turn around to leave the room. He hurried to the kitchen and grabbed whatever he needed while trying to keep his mind blissfully empty. It would have been easier if he hadn't yet known the sweet taste of Jaejoong's lips. It was so difficult but he would have to concentrate only on making sure Jaejoong no longer felt ill.
When Yunho returned to Jaejoong's cabin, he found the other boy sound asleep again. His mouth was parted cutely, and one of his hands was resting comfortably on the pillow next to his head. Feeling relieved, Yunho placed the food and the water on the night stand and took a seat from the chair in front of Jaejoong's desk to keep some distance between them - just in case he happened to suddenly lose control.
Jaejoong had the appetite of a bear once he woke up from his nap. He gobbled the piece of bread, the slightly cold bowl of porridge and the apple Yunho had brought him from the kitchen and drank the water as well. Jaejoong no longer felt like he needed to vomit. In fact, he was feeling much better than usual now that he had someone there to take care of him. While he had slept, Yunho had cleaned the room and replaced the bucket on the floor with a clean one had Jaejoong happened to throw up again. He had also somehow managed to change the linen on Jaejoong's bed while he had been asleep and even brought a clean set of clothes for Jaejoong to change into. The shirt he had apparently been wearing for the past few days felt sticky with cold sweat.
"Do you want more food?" Yunho asked him from the chair where he was seated, a book in his lap, "You were out for so long..."
"I'm fine," said Jaejoong while sliding a hand underneath the fabric of his shirt and rubbing his very flat stomach with his palm, "I can't eat any more or my stomach's going to burst."
"Have you heard those stories about men who had been trapped on an island with no food who ate themselves to death after being rescued?" Yunho asked him nonchalantly, "You shouldn't over do it."
"I won't," Jaejoong agreed, eyes never leaving the other boy. Why was he sitting on the chair when they normally sat together on the bed? Why hadn't he asked any questions about what had happened? Yunho must have been about to explode from curiosity while Jaejoong had been unconscious for days.
"The other pirates..." he started, "Did they tell you anything about me?"
"They told me you would wake up eventually," Yunho replied, closing the book he had been flipping through, "But I didn't believe them. Your skin went all blueish... You looked like a dead man. Like you had just drowned or something."
"I'm assuming you want to know what it was all about," Jaejoong said but Yunho shook his head.
"You don't have to if you don't want to tell me," Yunho sounded unsure as if he was afraid he was going to offend Jaejoong, "I told you I have secrets, no-one's forcing you to tell me yours."
"My mother was a witch," Jaejoong told him, completely ignoring what Yunho had just said, "She gave me this power."
"And what power is it exactly?" Yunho asked slowly, the tone of his voice filled with concealed curiosity. Even at a time like this Jaejoong couldn't help but admire Yunho's good manners.
"I can get this ship through any storm, any shoal or any obstacle that might come to mind," Jaejoong continued to explain, knowing he could trust Yunho with his secret, "That's what makes me the most valuable thing on this ship."
Yunho's expression remained neutral as he listened to Jaejoong's story.
"My father isn't a good man. He forced my mother to put this power into me, he needed something like me to become greater than any other pirate. To make Cassiopeia stronger than any other ship. My mother died while pouring this power into me."
"You've known how to do this all your life?"
"At first they thought it hadn't worked, I didn't show any signs until I turned eight. That's when it started bursting out of me - as I got older I learned how to control it," Jaejoong continued, threw his legs over the side of the bed to sit properly while facing Yunho.
"How could you ever learn to control such a thing by yourself?" Yunho asked, voice filled with both amazement and disbelief. Jaejoong shrugged.
"I just did," he said, "That is why the Captain insists on keeping me safe on this ship - I can't go out and fight like the other crew members. I can't go out to cities because the people who know about me could trap me and make me use my powers to their benefit. I would much rather stay here and at least be able to leave my room whenever I want to than be locked in a cell until they need me."
"But you become weak whenever you do it?" Yunho confirmed, eyebrows raised in question, "You become so sick you almost die?"
"Not always," the other shook his head, "It's just that the size of this ship is so big... It takes every bit of my strenght to move it. I can move smaller ships just fine. It might also be because I don't want to do it, I hate that they force me to sort out their problems."
"The Captain doesn't care about your well being at all!" Yunho suddenly exclaimed, getting angry, "You should have seen how he... After you fell... He acted like it was no big deal."
"It isn't a big deal to them, I'm just like a compass... A treasure map... An item they can use to their heart's content."
"That's not fair!" Yunho stood up and started to pace around the room, "What happens when one day you're not going to wake up? What happens if you stay asleep forever?"
"They're just going to have to find someone other like me," Jaejoong turned his gaze away, trying to hide the pleased smile that Yunho's anger had caused. His heart felt wonderfully warm even though he still lacked the strength in his limbs to even stand up properly. Did Yunho like him?
"But there won't be anyone like you!" Yunho continued to rant before pausing to stand in front of the other boy, "Have you ever heard about other kids who can do the things you can do? I sure haven't - I'm certain you're the only one."
"The world is a much more marvelous place than you think," Jaejoong leaned back on his hands and watched Yunho with growing delight, "Nothing in this world is irreplaceable."
"There won't be another you," Yunho huffed as he sat down next to Jaejoong on the bed, staring at the wooden floor, "There's only one you."
"Well... That is true," the smaller man agreed, unable to stop himself from smiling at Yunho being so upset. Jaejoong looked at Yunho's beautiful hands, how he had crossed his long fingers in discomfort, the way the muscles in his jaw appeared to be tense.
"How long do you think we can get away with you hiding in here?" Yunho turned to face him, looking very serious.
"A few more days I'm sure," Jaejoong replied, still unable to stop smiling, "At first we had to hide you but now it seems like the roles are reversed."
"I'm not going to let them drag you out to do that again," Yunho vowed, "You didn't see yourself... How you fell... It really scared me."
"Eventually you're going to have to."
"I won't, they can't keep-"
"Yunho," Jaejoong interrupted, not wanting the other man to keep riling himself up even though it did secretly please him, "Could you read to me again? We didn't finish the book."
For a moment Yunho looked apprehensive.
"Fine," he said after a moment of consideration, "But you should change out of those clothes, you were sweating like mad and we wouldn't want you to get a cold or anything because of that."
"Of course," agreed Jaejoong while starting to unbutton his shirt. His fingers felt stiff and didn't quite do the job but Yunho had stood up and turned around to avoid looking at him. Jaejoong watched him rummage through the things on his desk looking for the book with a purple cover and keeping his back to Jaejoong.
He pulled the shirt over his head and took of the pants he wore before reaching over to the pile of clothes Yunho had left on the bed earlier. The shirt was a comfortable, loose knit Jaejoong often wore, and the pants were made of soft flax fabric. Getting the shirt on was easy, putting his feet through the pants was easy too, but having to get up from the bed proved to be a bit more difficult. Jaejoong stood up on his shaky legs and pulled them up, almost loosing his footing in the process. Without managing to grasp what was going on, Yunho was already at his side, keeping him up with a pair of firm hands on his hips.
Yunho raised the hem of Jaejoong's shirt to tuck it inside his pants for him and Jaejoong placed his hands over Yunho's chest in need for some support. Suddenly aware of their height difference, Jaejoong looked up to meet Yunho's eyes but the other boy wasn't looking at him. His eyes were glued somewhere around Jaejoong's midsection, watching his own hands gather the fabric of Jaejoong's shirt and hide it beneath the waistband of his pants. The movement of Yunho's hands slowed down noticeably as they got to Jaejoong's backside. His fingertips slid into Jaejoong's pants for a bit too long to be considered completely innocent. They grazed over the naked skin of his lower back, then starting to play with the waistband of the underwear Jaejoong was wearing underneath his clothes. Breath got caught in Jaejoong's throat as he did nothing to stop Yunho's curious fingers.
He felt both of Yunho's hands slide under the fabric of his shirt, lifting it aside and grabbing a hold of Jaejoong's narrow hips with his open palms. Yunho's thumbs caressed the curve of his stomach, dipping into his pants - this time from the front - and feeling the softness of his skin. Jaejoong wasn't sure when he had looked away from Yunho's face to observe whatever his hands were doing, but suddenly, felt Yunho's nose bump against his cheekbone - lips close enough to capture his in a kiss. Jaejoong couldn't help it, he closed his eyes and turned his head to the side to brush his lips against Yunho's. Yunho didn't kiss him - he wrapped his arms around Jaejoong's waist under his shirt, holding him tighter, and just stayed still, breathing getting faster with every intake of air.
"The book... We should..." he mumbled with his eyes shut, clearly not wanting to pull away as Jaejoong stood up on his toes and closed his lips around Yunho's lower lip. Drawing it into his mouth, Jaejoong scraped the inner skin of Yunho's lip with his teeth, tongue coming out to poke it playfully.
Yunho's tongue was in his mouth within seconds. Tilting his head back, Jaejoong let Yunho support most of his weight as their mouths moved together without sound. Yunho's kiss was full of pent up energy like he had been thinking of nothing but kissing him during the days Jaejoong had been out of it. The hands underneath his shirt clung to the skin of his lower back, groping it excitedly, but never going places that would be inappropriate to touch just yet. With the touch of Yunho's lips Jaejoong suddenly didn't feel sick at all anymore. He didn't care what was proper - he had never been taught respectable mannors - and so, Jaejoong had no problem in lowering his hands to Yunho's belt and tugging on it to get him closer.
That seemed to do it. With a swift motion, Yunho had swept Jaejoong off his feet, somehow lowered him on the bed with complete ease and finally - lay his body down on top of the blonde. The kiss intensified, both trying to devour each other's lips with determination, tongues and teeth clashing in the heat of the moment. Even though Jaejoong had been expecting it, his stomach still made a giant back flip when he felt the hardness inside Yunho's pants, pressed up between their bodies and firmly against his thigh. It was the first time Jaejoong let out an unintended moan.
"I... I..." Yunho broke off for a moment to speak, "I really want to take off your clothes."
Jaejoong couldn't get himself to say anything and only nodded. He sneaked a hand between their bodies and pulled up the shirt he had just put on to reveal the pale curve of his stomach, slowly sliding it up all the way to his chest. Yunho buried his face into the crook of Jaejoong's neck and groaned. His fingertips flew across Jaejoong's skin, barely even touching, and his lips found their way to the side of Jaejoong's chin, kissing it languidly.
"Feel me," Jaejoong whispered, searching one of Yunho's hands and guiding it down to the front of his pants, pressing down on Yunho's knuckles to keep it where he wanted. Yunho groaned again, automatically cupping the bulge in Jaejoong's pants, hips making a smooth thrust against the smaller man's body.
"Ah-" Jaejoong let out the tiniest sound, eyelashes fluttering in pleasure as Yunho's hips made another pleasurable motion. He didn't know exactly what Yunho was doing, he didn't even know how far it could go - but Yunho stopped as abruptly as it had all started.
He rolled over to the bed next to Jaejoong, lied on his back - chest heavy with accelerated breathing - and stared at the roof above them in an attempt to calm himself down. Jaejoong was gasping as well, feeling the toll the use of his powers had took on his body once again now that Yunho was no longer kissing him. He hadn't done anything wrong - that Jaejoong was sure of - as Yunho was clearly suffering from some sort of mental battle taking place inside his head. Why had he stopped it?
"Have you... Have you ever been with anyone?" he asked, completely out of breath as Jaejoong sought Yunho's hand to intertwine their fingers like the first night they had slept together in the same bed.
"Um," Jaejoong murmured, unsure of what to reply, "No. I guess."
"You guess?"
"Um..."
"Jae... Have you ever been made love to?" Yunho spoke more directly, causing Jaejoong to flush bright red. He ignored the question, sat up in bed, grabbed the book Yunho had somewhere along the way placed on the night stand and gave it to the other man to change the topic. Wiggling closer to Yunho on the bed while pulling the blanket up to cover them, Jaejoong adjusted the other young man's arm to be able to lie comfortably tucked under his armpit.
Yunho didn't say anything about the awkward change of subject. He opened the book and started to read out loud, while Jaejoong spent all that time thinking about what Yunho had just asked him. He hadn't been made love to - he hadn't even been kissed before Yunho - but he sure as hell wanted to find out what it meant, especially if it would be with Yunho. Was it embarrassing not to know how it would even work? Would Yunho laugh at him if he told?
"Start again," Jaejoong interrupted Yunho's reading, "I wasn't listening."
Yunho let out a bright laugh that reminded Jaejoong of a dog barking, turned back the pages and started again from the part they had left it the last time. Snuggling closer, Jaejoong closed his eyes and decided to let Yunho's voice lull him back to sleep for now.
Three days later Yunho finally saw the shore again. It seemed like they had been sailing for a lifetime and therefore the view of a clearly deserted island was a welcome change. He and Jaejoong sat on Jaejoong's bed, observing the nearing land out of his cabin window with growing interest. It wasn't a particularly large island, probably a day's trip to walk around the entire thing, and looked like no man had ever stepped on the beach of white sand. Jaejoong had practically pressed his nose to the window, so excited he was, that his already large eyes were even wider than usual. The shade of his skin had returned to normal shortly after waking up and not a single trace of the strange sickness was any longer visible.
Yunho had worried so much he wouldn't have been surprised to find out his hair had turned grey. He hadn't been worried because of what the Captain had said - heck, Yunho didn't care at all about the man - but because he had started to really care about the other boy. Yunho admired Jaejoong's bravery and even liked the fact that he severely lacked both patience and self control - which Yunho found to be quite entertaining.
"Why are we stopping here?" Yunho asked as he could no longer surpress the curiosity, "It's clearly deserted, what's here to rob?"
Jaejoong looked around as if making sure nobody had suddenly opened the door to his cabin before he replied.
"We hid at least a dozen chests here," he whispered, "It was no use carrying them around before we make a stop at a pirate harbor. We're probably here to dig them up and take them with us again."
"Oh," Yunho said, eyeing the island eagerly, "How I wish we could step on land. I feel like my feet haven't felt steady ground in months. I'm not sure I can even walk without swaying anymore."
"I want to go out too," Jaejoong gave him an excited smile, "Do you think we could sneak out while all the crew is away?"
"You tell me... How are you feeling?"
"You know I haven't felt sick in days," Jaejoong continued, looking more and more full of energy as he spoke, "I want to shoot something!"
Yunho laughed - both in relief because the other boy seemed to have recovered completely, as well as at Jaejoong's eagerness to go out and shoot bullets.
"Unfortunately I don't think there's anything on that island to shoot."
"Sure there is!" Jaejoong got up from the bed and walked over to his desk to open the first drawer, "Let's shoot coconuts and see which one of us gets the most. The winner gets a prize of some sort."
"That does sound like fun," Yunho admitted, watching the other boy lift a pistol out of his desk's drawer. It was old, with intrigue carvings and a smooth handle made of wood.
"You can't tell anyone if I give you this," he made Yunho swear before passing the heavy pistol into his hand, "Hide it in your pocket and don't let them see you have one."
"So, you've finally started to trust me?" Yunho grinned, feeling the high-class weapon in his hold before tucking it under his belt. He felt slightly more like himself now that he had something other than his fists to protect himself with.
"I'm pretty sure you're not trying to kill me," Jaejoong rolled his eyes, took a pistol for himself as well and then hurried back to the window, "Look! We're almost there!"
They pressed their noses to the window again and watched quietly as the pirates started lowering life boats to the water to be able to row to the shore.
"When we can no longer see them, we crawl out of the window and climb down the hull and then swim to the strand. The water isn't too deep here."
"How long are they going to be gone?"
"At least half a day," Jaejoong grinned, "We have plenty of time to shoot coconuts."
It was way harder to crawl out of the window than it had been to get into the ship. They shinned down the hull of the ship until they were low enough to drop into the water without making a huge splash. The water was almost turqoise, so clear they could see the fish swimming near the bottom, and so refreshing and cool Yunho kind of wanted to swim around and play in the gentle waves. But Jaejoong was already making his way to the shore like some kind of mermaid, diving in and appearing a few meters ahead of Yunho who was enjoying himself quite a lot. Before than he had expected, Yunho's boots dug into sand and he could wade his way to the beach where Jaejoong was already sitting pouring water out of his shoes.
"This is great," Yunho exhaled deeply, taking in the scent of the earth around them and also sat down to empty the water out of his boots that had sucked in quite a bit. It was nice looking at the ship from a bit of a distance - it looked even more magnificent with its red sails and masts tall enough to reach the sky. He turned to look at Jaejoong who was already looking at him.
"It's nice to see you in proper daylight," he told, eyes twinkling from the sparkly ocean reflected in them.
"You don't look too bad either," Yunho complimented, whole-heartedly enjoying seeing Jaejoong's light freckles from up close. The color of his eyes looked lighter, a more milky brown in direct sunlight and even his hair looked silkier than usual.
Jaejoong pushed himself up, brushed away some sand out of his wet clothes and gave Yunho his hand to pull the taller man up as well. He intertwined their fingers smoothly, like it was no big deal at all and started tugging on Yunho's hand to make him move.
"Come on now, we have a lot of things to do!" he urged Yunho on, pulling him along and starting to walk towards the palm trees further in the distance. "There's a fountain we can swim in and drink from, you have to try it! And I have to show you this cave I found the last time we were here! And there are these flowers, you've got to smell them!"
"Let's do it all," Yunho agreed, not really listening as Jaejoong's hand in his was kind of distracting him at the moment.
The Captain of the pirate ship Cassiopeia stood at the front deck, admiring the view of the island before him. They had finished digging up the hidden valuables much faster than he had expected - the sun was still shining which meant they could head towards their next destination earlier. There was enough cargo to make a brief stop at a pirate harbor and for the crew to take a day's rest - the Captain knew how badly they needed it. They had been travelling for so long the crew was getting restless - the rum was nearly gone which meant there would be more fights. It couldn't do any harm for them to visit a brothel neither.
One of the helmsmen approached him, looking slightly afraid as the Captain layed eyes on him to listen to whatever he had to say.
"He's not here," the helmsman said, fidgeting with his hands nervously, "He must have snuck out while we weren't paying attention. The stowaway kid is gone too."
The Captain turned his eyes back to the island, jaw tense and shook his head in disapproval.
"We're leaving without him."
"But Captain, we can't leave the young Master-"
"We'll come back in a couple days," the Captain ordered, "That'll teach him a lesson not to run away again."
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