Caged (Chapter 26)
Title: Caged (Chapter 26)
Characters/Pairings: Kyuhyun, Sungmin, eventual!KyuMin, Siwon, Han Geng, Hyukjae, Donghae, eventual!Eunhae
Rating: R
WARNINGS: Implied sex/rape, disturbing situations, physical abuse/torture, language
Genre: au, angst, drama
Summary: It is a world full of dirt, abuse, selfishness and greed. It is an even worse world for a slade. A slade is a type of slave that is trained for a different form of manual labor. In today's terms, a prostitute of sorts. However, slades are purchased permanently and for one master only. Each slade has their own form of training, their own past, their own story. When four slades are forced to accept the idea that there is a world outside of their own, do they dare try to escape? Do they even have enough of their old selves left to be able to?
~~~~~
Sungmin almost whined when the warmth of Iljun's body left from on top of his. Iljun had kept to his word and had been very gentle, almost caring...too gentle. However, Sungmin didn't notice the odd behavior, he had forgotten all of this mistreatment and only focused on the gentle touches.
But as Iljun lifted himself off of Sungmin, something changed.
Sungmin lay unmoving, his eyes closed, reveling in the peace. Suddenly, Iljun reached over and took Sungmin's face in his hand, harshly gripping his cheeks and forcing the slade to look at him. Sungmin's eyes shot open at the sudden pain and jolt to his face. He looked up into a clearly annoyed Iljun.
“Don't think this will be forever. Only until my other slade recovers. And even until then, don't think I will always go easy on you.” Iljun growled out. He proved his seriousness with a swift slap to Sungmin's cheek.
“Do you understand?” Iljun said harshly. Sungmin nodded quickly, staring at Iljun's chest with wide eyes, anything to avoid eye contact any longer.
Iljun shoved Sungmin's face away, ignoring the whimper the slade failed to hide, as he turned to retrieve his shirt.
“But you're lucky.” Iljun said without turning to face Sungmin. “I'd rather my son not think of me as more of a monster than he already does.”
Sungmin was barely listening. He was currently positioned into the smallest ball he could curl himself into. He thought that maybe, just maybe, he had been wrong, that all of Iljun's torture was just to show Sungmin his position as a slade, to show that Iljun was, and will always be in charge. Sungmin thought that if this was so, maybe his testing was over and Iljun will treat him kindly from now on. However, Iljun's sharp grasp to his face snatched away the hope he had once again built up in himself.
He was done. He's given up. This is the last time he will ever get his hopes up again. Ever. It got more and more painful every time Sungmin's hope was stomped on in front of him. No more. He had no more fight left in him.
He closed his eyes, fighting to block out everything in his life, everything except the blackness of the back of his eyelids, the predictable darkness that would never let him down.
“Jungwoo suggested to take a day away as a break for myself...and I suppose you, as well. So you have one night off. Appreciate it. For you, it probably won't happen again.” Iljun continued as he pulled his pants on. He had told his slade that he was trying to be careful, he had acted as if he cared. And, oh, was he proud of his acting skills.
He always enjoyed seeing the shock and horror in his slade's eyes when his attitude swiftly changed afterward. Maybe his son was right; he was a monster. But he'll follow his son's advice. That way, he won't seem like “the devil,” as his son had once called him. It would also be a nice vacation; his hired nurse, Seri, had said he had been looking and acting stressed lately. A break would be good for him.
Sungmin barely heard what Iljun had said, but he didn't even register it. He began to breath heavily, suddenly short of breath as his mind reeled. He tried to focus on the darkness his closed eyelids brought him; however, his mind wouldn't allow it.
He though about his training, how horrible one specific trainer had been. He thought of his life now and how it had been his fate since birth.
Sungmin began to hyperventilate.
He thought of the horrors that were still to come in his future. He began to think of exactly how long of a future he had. A month? A week? A few days? Would Iljun allow him to live that long? Would Sungmin even give Iljun the chance to be the one to end his life?
Sungmin's eyes shot open. That was the first time he had thought about death, his death, since Hyukjae promised he would get all of them out. Siwon had said something about them trying to escape tomorrow. But he no longer cared. He wasn't going to get his hope up only to have it shoved in his face when his cage door shut permanently in his nose.
But then his mind moved to Sora. She was so tiny, and relied on him to live and be happy, and she deserved to be happy; she didn't deserve to be stuck in a basement. But Sungmin hadn't been able to take care of her for the past two days; it was always Kyuhyun checking on her to make sure she was fed and had water. Kyuhyun could take care of her. Sora didn't need Sungmin.
Kyuhyun.
Sungmin's mind shifted to the other slade. He clutched at his chest when he realized that it would hurt him more to leave Kyuhyun than it would for him to just give up and allow Iljun to kill him.
But he didn't have anymore fight left in him; it all left with Iljun out of the room, leaving Sungmin alone and curled in a ball.
But they were in love, right? Sungmin and Kyuhyun were in love; or at least, they thought they were. Love was supposed to be stronger, wasn't it? The idea of love Sungmin had in his head was something so strong nothing could get in the way, not even being someone else's sex slave. But was it enough to keep Sungmin going.
Sungmin shuttered as a loud sob escaped; he hadn't even realized when he started crying. It all was just finally too much. Even if they were in love, Sungmin wasn't strong enough to fight for his fate anymore, to fight for his future, to fight for his life.
He jumped slightly, but didn't move, when the door to the room flew open.
“Sungmin! Sungmin, are you alright?” Hankyung said as soon as he saw the slade curled into a ball. He and Siwon had sat downstairs waiting for the okay that Iljun was done. Both had been tense and on edge. The plan was to leave tomorrow, with all of the slades, but in that moment, as they waited, they had had no idea if Sungmin was slowly dying or not.
Siwon came up quickly behind Hankyung, reaching out to turn Sungmin onto his back so they could see what the damage may be.
“Sungmin? Can you look at me?” Hankyung said as he knelt at Sungmin's side and tried to pull the slade's hands away from around his face. He could see the slade was crying, but he needed to know how hurt Sungmin was.
Sungmin allowed himself to be rolled onto his back and for his hands to be pulled away from his face, but he refused to look directly at the guards. Iljun hadn't even physically hurt him, and yet he was sobbing. He was so ashamed at how weak he had become so quickly.
“Did...Did he hurt you?” Siwon questioned as he found no new bruise or cut upon his inspection of Sungmin's body.
Sungmin just whimpered. No, no Iljun hadn't hurt him, but he was still a broken mess.
“Where Sungmin? Where does it hurt?” Hankyung asked quickly.
“H-He didn't...didn't h-hurt me...” Sungmin managed to mumble out between choked sobs.
“He didn't?” Siwon and Hankyung asked at the same time, turning to face each other with confused looks.
“You're not hurt?” Siwon questioned, trying to gently coax Sungmin into looking at him.
Sungmin shook his head.
“So nothing new hurts, Sungmin? Are you sure?” Hankyung couldn't believe that Iljun had suddenly changed his ways
Sungmin slowly nodded, avoiding eye contact.
“You're sure?” Siwon asked sternly. He wanted to move Sungmin so they could clean and dress him, but if Iljun did, in fact, hurt the slade, Siwon would only hurt him more by moving him without specific care.
Sungmin nodded again.
“O-Okay...” Siwon said hesitantly. He nodded to Hankyung, motioning for the other guard to help him pick up Sungmin.
The two guards struggled to get Sungmin into a standing position. They were still worried that Sungmin wouldn't be able to hold himself up at all, so they shared his weight between them. Sungmin kept his head down as he was lead, or rather, carried into the bathroom attached to the room.
The guards were a bit unsure as to how they were going to accomplish cleaning Sungmin if the slade couldn't even stand on his own. Hankyung looked as Siwon with an understanding nod and shouldered all of Sungmin's weight onto himself.
Hankyung held Sungmin around the waist and pulled him into the shower.
“It will be okay, Sungmin.” Hankyung mumbled close to the slade's ear. Sungmin was still crying, and neither of the guards understood why, but Hankyung felt the need to comfort the slade.
Siwon turned on the water for the shower, ignoring the fact that Hankyung would get soaked from being in the shower with Sungmin. They had been through this before with Iljun's past slades-this wasn't new to either of them.
Hankyung held Sungmin up straight as the warm water ran over his chest. Sungmin whined slightly. He would have to admit that the warm water felt good running over his burns and bruises, but cold water was still what he was used to.
Sungmin continued to cry as Siwon began to wash off the sticky reminder of what Iljun had done. His mind was still reeling, and he was barely conscious of what was going on. He continued to think of Kyuhyun.
Kyuhyun had said that he might be in love with him, too. Would he hurt the other if he let go? How much would he hurt him? Kyuhyun always had the hope, always had enough hope for the two of them. He would probably be able to carry on fine without him.
But there was a time when Kyuhyun pulled Sungmin's arm around himself and pleaded for the elder slade to keep up hope for both of them. Would Kyuhyun be hurt if he let go?
Hankyung gasped when he felt Sungmin all of a sudden turn into dead weight in his arms. He held tighter at the slade's waist and looked to Siwon for help.
Siwon leaned in close to Sungmin, lifting his chin up so he could look in his face.
“He passed out.” Siwon announced. “We'll finish dressing him and then let him sleep.”
Hankyung shifted to get a better hold on Sungmin and nodded.
As the guards pulled Sungmin's shirt on with some difficulty as they tried to hold Sungmin up at the same time, Hankyung spoke. “Do...Do you think Sungmin will make it?”
“What do you mean? We are leaving tomorrow.” Siwon stated confidently-if he said it confidently, his and Jungwoo's plan would unravel without a snag; that's how it works, right?
“I know we are leaving tomorrow. But...But do you think Sungmin will make it?” Hankyung tried his hardest to voice out his worry without actually saying it in direct terms-if he didn't say it directly, everything will be fine; that's how it works, right?
“What are you talking about? Of course, he is going to make it.” Siwon said, looking Hankyung directly in the eyes. He knew what the other guard was thinking, he understood his worry-would Sungmin be able to survive an escape attempt?
“Of course, he is going to make it.” Siwon repeated more confidently-if he said it confidently, everything would be fine; that's how it works...right?
~
Siwon and Hankyung wobbled through the double doors, as they carried an unconscious Sungmin to his bed.
The lights were off, as it was well past 10pm. There were mounds on each of the beds to indicate the other slades had gone to sleep. However, as the guards opened Sungmin's and Kyuhyun's cage door, the mound on Sungmin's bed began to move.
“Is he hurt?” Kyuhyun whispered as he quickly got to his feet. He had lain down when the lights went out, but he knew he wouldn't fall asleep until Sungmin was back with him.
“No, he's just unconscious. Iljun didn't hurt him, though.” Hankyung said as he and Siwon tried to gently lay Sungmin onto the bed; however, Kyuhyun was making it a bit difficult as he continued to try and see if Sungmin had any new cuts.
“What do you mean he's not hurt? He's unconscious! What happened?” Kyuhyun whispered as loud as he could. He didn't want to shout and wake up Hyukjae and Donghae, but he was angry at what seemed to be a lie from the guards.
“He said he wasn't hurt.” Siwon stated as he stood back and allowed Hankyung to cover Sungmin with the blanket. “He was crying when we got there, and he wouldn't stop, but he wasn't hurt. I think he passed out form exhaustion.”
“He'll be okay, though, right?” Kyuhyun asked, still focused on checking Sungmin, going so far as to pull back the blanket Hankyung had just laid down in order to check under Sungmin's shirt for new bruises.
Siwon froze slightly. Kyuhyun's question was eerily similar to Hankyung's.
“Of course he will.” Hankyung answered confidently before Siwon had a chance to regain his composure.
“Of course he will.” Kyuhyun whispered. “Of course he will.”
“In...In the morning, put that antiseptic cream on him, again, alright, Kyuhyun?” Siwon said.
Kyuhyun nodded, pulling Sungmin's shorts down slightly to see if there was anything new on his thighs.
Siwon pulled at Hankyung's arm and the two guards left Kyuhyun alone with Sungmin.
“You're okay, you're okay.” Kyuhyun kept repeating as he tried to roll Sungmin over slightly in order to see Sungmin's back. He stopped immediately when Sungmin hissed at the movement. “Sungmin?”
“That hurts.” Sungmin whined, his eyes squeezed tight.
“I'm sorry! Master Iljun didn't hurt you, right? I just want to make sure.”
Sungmin opened his eyes quickly when he recognized Kyuhyun's voice. He looked around for a moment, a bit dazed that he was suddenly in his bed.
“He didn't hurt you?” Kyuhyun asked again, reaching out his hand and gently rubbing Sungmin's cheek.
Sungmin stared at Kyuhyun. He shook his head slightly as an answer to Kyuhyun's question, but he remained silent and stared.
Kyuhyun said nothing as he climbed into bed himself, pulling the blanket back over Sungmin and himself. He laid himself close to Sungmin, reaching up and continuing to stroke the elder's cheek. He stared into Sungmin's eyes, and he got worried-there was something different.
“Are you okay, Sungmin?” Kyuhyun asked, turning on his side to better face Sungmin.
Sungmin finally broke eye contact, looking to the blanket instead of Kyuhyun.
“Sungmin. What's wrong?” Kyuhyun asked. He reached out and, with two fingers, lifted Sungmin's chin so the elder was facing him, again.
Sungmin could feel his eyes beginning to water. Why the hell was he so weak?
“Sungmin, please tell me what's wrong.”
“I...I can't...”
“Of course you can, Sungmin. You can always tell me anything.” Kyuhyun said gently.
Sungmin shook his head slightly. “I just can't...”
Kyuhyun began to feel a bit nauseous-something was wrong. But why now? They were so close to being free!
“Sungmin, what's wrong? What happened?”
“He...He was gentle...” Sungmin mumbled. He would try to avoid what was really bothering him for as long as he could. Kyuhyun asked what happened, he would answer that question first, then.
“Gentle?” Kyuhyun repeated with disbelief.
Sungmin nodded. “He didn't hurt me at all...well...”
“'Well' what, Sungmin? He hurt you, didn't he? I knew he wou-”
“No...not really. He grabbed my face after, and slapped me. But...but he didn't hurt me at all.”
Kyuhyun relaxed slightly. Sungmin could handle one slap, he knew his Sungmin could handle that.
His Sungmin. That's exactly who the other slade was to him. His. And once they escaped, he would finally be able to keep him safe, keep him happy, keep him for himself.
“Why did you pass out then?”
Sungmin shrugged. “I was crying. Maybe because I was tired?”
“If he was gentle, why were you crying?”
Sungmin shrugged, but remained silent this time. Kyuhyun was about to bring up the topic he wanted to avoid.
“Sungmin, are you okay? I mean...I know he didn't hurt you...physically. But are you...are you alright?” It was painfully obvious that Kyuhyun was significantly worried now.
Sungmin shrugged, again, and remained silent, his eyes looking to the blanket.
“Sungmin, please tell me.” Kyuhyun pleaded.
“You said you thought you loved me, right?” Sungmin said quickly.
Kyuhyun was a bit taken aback, but responded immediately. “Yes. I do love you.” Before, he had said that he 'thought' he was in love with Sungmin, but he knew now. He knew he was truly in love with Sungmin. The instant panic and nausea that swam through Kyuhyun's body whenever he saw Sungmin in pain or unconscious clarified his feelings. He was in love with Sungmin.
“If I...If I...” Sungmin started, but it was much harder to voice what he wanted than he thought.
“What, Sungmin? If you, what?” Kyuhyun could feel that panic and nausea began to bubble up in him.
“If I didn't...If I didn't m-make i-it...” Sungmin trailed off, looking back to the blanket.
“Don't you fucking say that, Sungmin.” Kyuhyun said harshly. He forced Sungmin to look at him, again. “Don't ever fucking say that to me, Sungmin. You are going to make it. You don't have a choice. You can't leave me, Sungmin.”
Kyuhyun tried to rein his tears in, but he was failing miserably.
“Don't even think something like that.” Kyuhyun said sternly, almost angrily. He felt a tear run down his cheek, but he refused to make a sound. “Promise me, Sungmin.”
“No one can keep promises...” Sungmin mumbled. He could see the pain that had suddenly ripped through Kyuhyun at his words; he could hear the fear that laced the slades responses. But he would never make a promise to him that he didn't know he could keep; he would never allow Kyuhyun's hope to raise, only to be let down because of him. Never.
“Sungmin, you can't leave me.” Kyuhyun whimpered slightly.
“Kyuhyun, I won't promise you something I don't know I can keep.” Sungmin muttered.
Suddenly, Kyuhyun pulled Sungmin close to him, almost painfully. Neither of the slades knew exactly what was happening. Sungmin was too shocked to say a word or pull away. Kyuhyun was too in the moment to realize what he was doing.
Their lips touched, and instantly they both relaxed. It was as if they had done this before, as if they were long lost lovers who had finally reunited, more relaxed in each other's embrace than not.
It should have scared them. It should have made them pull away. But it didn't-it did the exact opposite.
As weak as he felt, Sungmin pushed closer to Kyuhyun, and Kyuhyun placed his hand behind Sungmin's head. Neither were thinking of anything else by each other. If they had thought of anything else, they would have pulled away immediately and slept in separate sides of the cage, even if it meant one would be on the floor.
Their lips seemed to mold to each other perfectly, as if they were meant for each other. It felt so right. More right than the chocolate Sungmin loved, more right than listening to beautiful piano music that Kyuhyun would hum along with. More right than anything either of them had ever experienced.
They finally separated, but didn't pull away. They stayed close, foreheads touching, sharing the same breath.
“You can't leave me, Sungmin.” Kyuhyun whispered. His eyes remained closed. The consequences of what he had done began to pick at the edges of his brain, but he regretted nothing.
“I won't.” Sungmin whispered back. It was in that one moment that their lips touched that Sungmin knew, for sure, that he could never leave Kyuhyun. Ever. He may not have much hope or fight left in him, but he would hold on for as long as he could to stay with Kyuhyun.
“Promise me, Sungmin. Promise me you won't leave me. Ever.”
“I promise. I promise.”
to be continued...
Chapter 27
a/n Don't hate me. I'm sure you all do now, though. My only excuse for my three (two?) week absence is this: school freaking sucks.
Even if you hate me, I still love you all :)
Characters/Pairings: Kyuhyun, Sungmin, eventual!KyuMin, Siwon, Han Geng, Hyukjae, Donghae, eventual!Eunhae
Rating: R
WARNINGS: Implied sex/rape, disturbing situations, physical abuse/torture, language
Genre: au, angst, drama
Summary: It is a world full of dirt, abuse, selfishness and greed. It is an even worse world for a slade. A slade is a type of slave that is trained for a different form of manual labor. In today's terms, a prostitute of sorts. However, slades are purchased permanently and for one master only. Each slade has their own form of training, their own past, their own story. When four slades are forced to accept the idea that there is a world outside of their own, do they dare try to escape? Do they even have enough of their old selves left to be able to?
~~~~~
Sungmin almost whined when the warmth of Iljun's body left from on top of his. Iljun had kept to his word and had been very gentle, almost caring...too gentle. However, Sungmin didn't notice the odd behavior, he had forgotten all of this mistreatment and only focused on the gentle touches.
But as Iljun lifted himself off of Sungmin, something changed.
Sungmin lay unmoving, his eyes closed, reveling in the peace. Suddenly, Iljun reached over and took Sungmin's face in his hand, harshly gripping his cheeks and forcing the slade to look at him. Sungmin's eyes shot open at the sudden pain and jolt to his face. He looked up into a clearly annoyed Iljun.
“Don't think this will be forever. Only until my other slade recovers. And even until then, don't think I will always go easy on you.” Iljun growled out. He proved his seriousness with a swift slap to Sungmin's cheek.
“Do you understand?” Iljun said harshly. Sungmin nodded quickly, staring at Iljun's chest with wide eyes, anything to avoid eye contact any longer.
Iljun shoved Sungmin's face away, ignoring the whimper the slade failed to hide, as he turned to retrieve his shirt.
“But you're lucky.” Iljun said without turning to face Sungmin. “I'd rather my son not think of me as more of a monster than he already does.”
Sungmin was barely listening. He was currently positioned into the smallest ball he could curl himself into. He thought that maybe, just maybe, he had been wrong, that all of Iljun's torture was just to show Sungmin his position as a slade, to show that Iljun was, and will always be in charge. Sungmin thought that if this was so, maybe his testing was over and Iljun will treat him kindly from now on. However, Iljun's sharp grasp to his face snatched away the hope he had once again built up in himself.
He was done. He's given up. This is the last time he will ever get his hopes up again. Ever. It got more and more painful every time Sungmin's hope was stomped on in front of him. No more. He had no more fight left in him.
He closed his eyes, fighting to block out everything in his life, everything except the blackness of the back of his eyelids, the predictable darkness that would never let him down.
“Jungwoo suggested to take a day away as a break for myself...and I suppose you, as well. So you have one night off. Appreciate it. For you, it probably won't happen again.” Iljun continued as he pulled his pants on. He had told his slade that he was trying to be careful, he had acted as if he cared. And, oh, was he proud of his acting skills.
He always enjoyed seeing the shock and horror in his slade's eyes when his attitude swiftly changed afterward. Maybe his son was right; he was a monster. But he'll follow his son's advice. That way, he won't seem like “the devil,” as his son had once called him. It would also be a nice vacation; his hired nurse, Seri, had said he had been looking and acting stressed lately. A break would be good for him.
Sungmin barely heard what Iljun had said, but he didn't even register it. He began to breath heavily, suddenly short of breath as his mind reeled. He tried to focus on the darkness his closed eyelids brought him; however, his mind wouldn't allow it.
He though about his training, how horrible one specific trainer had been. He thought of his life now and how it had been his fate since birth.
Sungmin began to hyperventilate.
He thought of the horrors that were still to come in his future. He began to think of exactly how long of a future he had. A month? A week? A few days? Would Iljun allow him to live that long? Would Sungmin even give Iljun the chance to be the one to end his life?
Sungmin's eyes shot open. That was the first time he had thought about death, his death, since Hyukjae promised he would get all of them out. Siwon had said something about them trying to escape tomorrow. But he no longer cared. He wasn't going to get his hope up only to have it shoved in his face when his cage door shut permanently in his nose.
But then his mind moved to Sora. She was so tiny, and relied on him to live and be happy, and she deserved to be happy; she didn't deserve to be stuck in a basement. But Sungmin hadn't been able to take care of her for the past two days; it was always Kyuhyun checking on her to make sure she was fed and had water. Kyuhyun could take care of her. Sora didn't need Sungmin.
Kyuhyun.
Sungmin's mind shifted to the other slade. He clutched at his chest when he realized that it would hurt him more to leave Kyuhyun than it would for him to just give up and allow Iljun to kill him.
But he didn't have anymore fight left in him; it all left with Iljun out of the room, leaving Sungmin alone and curled in a ball.
But they were in love, right? Sungmin and Kyuhyun were in love; or at least, they thought they were. Love was supposed to be stronger, wasn't it? The idea of love Sungmin had in his head was something so strong nothing could get in the way, not even being someone else's sex slave. But was it enough to keep Sungmin going.
Sungmin shuttered as a loud sob escaped; he hadn't even realized when he started crying. It all was just finally too much. Even if they were in love, Sungmin wasn't strong enough to fight for his fate anymore, to fight for his future, to fight for his life.
He jumped slightly, but didn't move, when the door to the room flew open.
“Sungmin! Sungmin, are you alright?” Hankyung said as soon as he saw the slade curled into a ball. He and Siwon had sat downstairs waiting for the okay that Iljun was done. Both had been tense and on edge. The plan was to leave tomorrow, with all of the slades, but in that moment, as they waited, they had had no idea if Sungmin was slowly dying or not.
Siwon came up quickly behind Hankyung, reaching out to turn Sungmin onto his back so they could see what the damage may be.
“Sungmin? Can you look at me?” Hankyung said as he knelt at Sungmin's side and tried to pull the slade's hands away from around his face. He could see the slade was crying, but he needed to know how hurt Sungmin was.
Sungmin allowed himself to be rolled onto his back and for his hands to be pulled away from his face, but he refused to look directly at the guards. Iljun hadn't even physically hurt him, and yet he was sobbing. He was so ashamed at how weak he had become so quickly.
“Did...Did he hurt you?” Siwon questioned as he found no new bruise or cut upon his inspection of Sungmin's body.
Sungmin just whimpered. No, no Iljun hadn't hurt him, but he was still a broken mess.
“Where Sungmin? Where does it hurt?” Hankyung asked quickly.
“H-He didn't...didn't h-hurt me...” Sungmin managed to mumble out between choked sobs.
“He didn't?” Siwon and Hankyung asked at the same time, turning to face each other with confused looks.
“You're not hurt?” Siwon questioned, trying to gently coax Sungmin into looking at him.
Sungmin shook his head.
“So nothing new hurts, Sungmin? Are you sure?” Hankyung couldn't believe that Iljun had suddenly changed his ways
Sungmin slowly nodded, avoiding eye contact.
“You're sure?” Siwon asked sternly. He wanted to move Sungmin so they could clean and dress him, but if Iljun did, in fact, hurt the slade, Siwon would only hurt him more by moving him without specific care.
Sungmin nodded again.
“O-Okay...” Siwon said hesitantly. He nodded to Hankyung, motioning for the other guard to help him pick up Sungmin.
The two guards struggled to get Sungmin into a standing position. They were still worried that Sungmin wouldn't be able to hold himself up at all, so they shared his weight between them. Sungmin kept his head down as he was lead, or rather, carried into the bathroom attached to the room.
The guards were a bit unsure as to how they were going to accomplish cleaning Sungmin if the slade couldn't even stand on his own. Hankyung looked as Siwon with an understanding nod and shouldered all of Sungmin's weight onto himself.
Hankyung held Sungmin around the waist and pulled him into the shower.
“It will be okay, Sungmin.” Hankyung mumbled close to the slade's ear. Sungmin was still crying, and neither of the guards understood why, but Hankyung felt the need to comfort the slade.
Siwon turned on the water for the shower, ignoring the fact that Hankyung would get soaked from being in the shower with Sungmin. They had been through this before with Iljun's past slades-this wasn't new to either of them.
Hankyung held Sungmin up straight as the warm water ran over his chest. Sungmin whined slightly. He would have to admit that the warm water felt good running over his burns and bruises, but cold water was still what he was used to.
Sungmin continued to cry as Siwon began to wash off the sticky reminder of what Iljun had done. His mind was still reeling, and he was barely conscious of what was going on. He continued to think of Kyuhyun.
Kyuhyun had said that he might be in love with him, too. Would he hurt the other if he let go? How much would he hurt him? Kyuhyun always had the hope, always had enough hope for the two of them. He would probably be able to carry on fine without him.
But there was a time when Kyuhyun pulled Sungmin's arm around himself and pleaded for the elder slade to keep up hope for both of them. Would Kyuhyun be hurt if he let go?
Hankyung gasped when he felt Sungmin all of a sudden turn into dead weight in his arms. He held tighter at the slade's waist and looked to Siwon for help.
Siwon leaned in close to Sungmin, lifting his chin up so he could look in his face.
“He passed out.” Siwon announced. “We'll finish dressing him and then let him sleep.”
Hankyung shifted to get a better hold on Sungmin and nodded.
As the guards pulled Sungmin's shirt on with some difficulty as they tried to hold Sungmin up at the same time, Hankyung spoke. “Do...Do you think Sungmin will make it?”
“What do you mean? We are leaving tomorrow.” Siwon stated confidently-if he said it confidently, his and Jungwoo's plan would unravel without a snag; that's how it works, right?
“I know we are leaving tomorrow. But...But do you think Sungmin will make it?” Hankyung tried his hardest to voice out his worry without actually saying it in direct terms-if he didn't say it directly, everything will be fine; that's how it works, right?
“What are you talking about? Of course, he is going to make it.” Siwon said, looking Hankyung directly in the eyes. He knew what the other guard was thinking, he understood his worry-would Sungmin be able to survive an escape attempt?
“Of course, he is going to make it.” Siwon repeated more confidently-if he said it confidently, everything would be fine; that's how it works...right?
~
Siwon and Hankyung wobbled through the double doors, as they carried an unconscious Sungmin to his bed.
The lights were off, as it was well past 10pm. There were mounds on each of the beds to indicate the other slades had gone to sleep. However, as the guards opened Sungmin's and Kyuhyun's cage door, the mound on Sungmin's bed began to move.
“Is he hurt?” Kyuhyun whispered as he quickly got to his feet. He had lain down when the lights went out, but he knew he wouldn't fall asleep until Sungmin was back with him.
“No, he's just unconscious. Iljun didn't hurt him, though.” Hankyung said as he and Siwon tried to gently lay Sungmin onto the bed; however, Kyuhyun was making it a bit difficult as he continued to try and see if Sungmin had any new cuts.
“What do you mean he's not hurt? He's unconscious! What happened?” Kyuhyun whispered as loud as he could. He didn't want to shout and wake up Hyukjae and Donghae, but he was angry at what seemed to be a lie from the guards.
“He said he wasn't hurt.” Siwon stated as he stood back and allowed Hankyung to cover Sungmin with the blanket. “He was crying when we got there, and he wouldn't stop, but he wasn't hurt. I think he passed out form exhaustion.”
“He'll be okay, though, right?” Kyuhyun asked, still focused on checking Sungmin, going so far as to pull back the blanket Hankyung had just laid down in order to check under Sungmin's shirt for new bruises.
Siwon froze slightly. Kyuhyun's question was eerily similar to Hankyung's.
“Of course he will.” Hankyung answered confidently before Siwon had a chance to regain his composure.
“Of course he will.” Kyuhyun whispered. “Of course he will.”
“In...In the morning, put that antiseptic cream on him, again, alright, Kyuhyun?” Siwon said.
Kyuhyun nodded, pulling Sungmin's shorts down slightly to see if there was anything new on his thighs.
Siwon pulled at Hankyung's arm and the two guards left Kyuhyun alone with Sungmin.
“You're okay, you're okay.” Kyuhyun kept repeating as he tried to roll Sungmin over slightly in order to see Sungmin's back. He stopped immediately when Sungmin hissed at the movement. “Sungmin?”
“That hurts.” Sungmin whined, his eyes squeezed tight.
“I'm sorry! Master Iljun didn't hurt you, right? I just want to make sure.”
Sungmin opened his eyes quickly when he recognized Kyuhyun's voice. He looked around for a moment, a bit dazed that he was suddenly in his bed.
“He didn't hurt you?” Kyuhyun asked again, reaching out his hand and gently rubbing Sungmin's cheek.
Sungmin stared at Kyuhyun. He shook his head slightly as an answer to Kyuhyun's question, but he remained silent and stared.
Kyuhyun said nothing as he climbed into bed himself, pulling the blanket back over Sungmin and himself. He laid himself close to Sungmin, reaching up and continuing to stroke the elder's cheek. He stared into Sungmin's eyes, and he got worried-there was something different.
“Are you okay, Sungmin?” Kyuhyun asked, turning on his side to better face Sungmin.
Sungmin finally broke eye contact, looking to the blanket instead of Kyuhyun.
“Sungmin. What's wrong?” Kyuhyun asked. He reached out and, with two fingers, lifted Sungmin's chin so the elder was facing him, again.
Sungmin could feel his eyes beginning to water. Why the hell was he so weak?
“Sungmin, please tell me what's wrong.”
“I...I can't...”
“Of course you can, Sungmin. You can always tell me anything.” Kyuhyun said gently.
Sungmin shook his head slightly. “I just can't...”
Kyuhyun began to feel a bit nauseous-something was wrong. But why now? They were so close to being free!
“Sungmin, what's wrong? What happened?”
“He...He was gentle...” Sungmin mumbled. He would try to avoid what was really bothering him for as long as he could. Kyuhyun asked what happened, he would answer that question first, then.
“Gentle?” Kyuhyun repeated with disbelief.
Sungmin nodded. “He didn't hurt me at all...well...”
“'Well' what, Sungmin? He hurt you, didn't he? I knew he wou-”
“No...not really. He grabbed my face after, and slapped me. But...but he didn't hurt me at all.”
Kyuhyun relaxed slightly. Sungmin could handle one slap, he knew his Sungmin could handle that.
His Sungmin. That's exactly who the other slade was to him. His. And once they escaped, he would finally be able to keep him safe, keep him happy, keep him for himself.
“Why did you pass out then?”
Sungmin shrugged. “I was crying. Maybe because I was tired?”
“If he was gentle, why were you crying?”
Sungmin shrugged, but remained silent this time. Kyuhyun was about to bring up the topic he wanted to avoid.
“Sungmin, are you okay? I mean...I know he didn't hurt you...physically. But are you...are you alright?” It was painfully obvious that Kyuhyun was significantly worried now.
Sungmin shrugged, again, and remained silent, his eyes looking to the blanket.
“Sungmin, please tell me.” Kyuhyun pleaded.
“You said you thought you loved me, right?” Sungmin said quickly.
Kyuhyun was a bit taken aback, but responded immediately. “Yes. I do love you.” Before, he had said that he 'thought' he was in love with Sungmin, but he knew now. He knew he was truly in love with Sungmin. The instant panic and nausea that swam through Kyuhyun's body whenever he saw Sungmin in pain or unconscious clarified his feelings. He was in love with Sungmin.
“If I...If I...” Sungmin started, but it was much harder to voice what he wanted than he thought.
“What, Sungmin? If you, what?” Kyuhyun could feel that panic and nausea began to bubble up in him.
“If I didn't...If I didn't m-make i-it...” Sungmin trailed off, looking back to the blanket.
“Don't you fucking say that, Sungmin.” Kyuhyun said harshly. He forced Sungmin to look at him, again. “Don't ever fucking say that to me, Sungmin. You are going to make it. You don't have a choice. You can't leave me, Sungmin.”
Kyuhyun tried to rein his tears in, but he was failing miserably.
“Don't even think something like that.” Kyuhyun said sternly, almost angrily. He felt a tear run down his cheek, but he refused to make a sound. “Promise me, Sungmin.”
“No one can keep promises...” Sungmin mumbled. He could see the pain that had suddenly ripped through Kyuhyun at his words; he could hear the fear that laced the slades responses. But he would never make a promise to him that he didn't know he could keep; he would never allow Kyuhyun's hope to raise, only to be let down because of him. Never.
“Sungmin, you can't leave me.” Kyuhyun whimpered slightly.
“Kyuhyun, I won't promise you something I don't know I can keep.” Sungmin muttered.
Suddenly, Kyuhyun pulled Sungmin close to him, almost painfully. Neither of the slades knew exactly what was happening. Sungmin was too shocked to say a word or pull away. Kyuhyun was too in the moment to realize what he was doing.
Their lips touched, and instantly they both relaxed. It was as if they had done this before, as if they were long lost lovers who had finally reunited, more relaxed in each other's embrace than not.
It should have scared them. It should have made them pull away. But it didn't-it did the exact opposite.
As weak as he felt, Sungmin pushed closer to Kyuhyun, and Kyuhyun placed his hand behind Sungmin's head. Neither were thinking of anything else by each other. If they had thought of anything else, they would have pulled away immediately and slept in separate sides of the cage, even if it meant one would be on the floor.
Their lips seemed to mold to each other perfectly, as if they were meant for each other. It felt so right. More right than the chocolate Sungmin loved, more right than listening to beautiful piano music that Kyuhyun would hum along with. More right than anything either of them had ever experienced.
They finally separated, but didn't pull away. They stayed close, foreheads touching, sharing the same breath.
“You can't leave me, Sungmin.” Kyuhyun whispered. His eyes remained closed. The consequences of what he had done began to pick at the edges of his brain, but he regretted nothing.
“I won't.” Sungmin whispered back. It was in that one moment that their lips touched that Sungmin knew, for sure, that he could never leave Kyuhyun. Ever. He may not have much hope or fight left in him, but he would hold on for as long as he could to stay with Kyuhyun.
“Promise me, Sungmin. Promise me you won't leave me. Ever.”
“I promise. I promise.”
to be continued...
Chapter 27
a/n Don't hate me. I'm sure you all do now, though. My only excuse for my three (two?) week absence is this: school freaking sucks.
Even if you hate me, I still love you all :)