• • •

Wooyoung

"Wait," I begin as soon as San's finished talking. He still paces around though, his eyes repeatedly darting elsewhere. They don't seem to be present at all, but someplace else, someplace faraway. "San, what do you mean?"

San doesn't respond. He keeps moving, his hands fisted and unable to stay still. It gets me worried, and a little bit afraid.

"San?" I walk up to him, and impulsively grab his wrist before I can think too much about it. Immediately, sparks ignite under my skin, and my heart squeezes beneath the confines of my ribcage. My words get stuck in my throat the moment San's red eyes meet mine, round and startled. But for once though, I don't drop my hand, but keep it in place. I have a feeling that San prefers it like that too.

"Wooyoung," San says, his tone low and breathy. Up close, I spot the way his chest rapidly falls and rises, but then he breaks eye contact, glaring at the floor. His long lashes flutter over the smooth expanse of his cheeks, and I internally smack myself in the head.

Jung Wooyoung, now is NOT the time to be thinking about how attractive San is.

"San," I clear my throat to try and rid myself of these stupid thoughts I'm having. No matter how pretty San is, I can't only be focusing on that right now. There are more pressing factors that need to be addressed. "What's going on? How -- how am I in danger?"

San inhales a sharp breath, his eyebrows creased like he's thinking hard about something. He looks unsure, uncomfortable. Scared.

A part of me feels like I'm coming off a bit too strong and nosy, so I place a hand on San's shoulder, prompting him to look directly at me. "It's okay if you don't wanna talk about it now. Just breathe and relax, okay? I'll always be there to listen."

Guilt flashes across San's ruby irises, and he quickly shakes his head. "No, you need to know." He takes a step closer, which totally catches me off-guard. And then he's the one holding my wrist in his grip.

His hold isn't too tight, but it's just enough to warm my entire neck up. It's weird how just one touch from him can affect me like this. Wooyoung, get a grip.

San's fingers run down my palm and along the veins, feathery light and careful. Despite his gentle movement, my knees feel a few seconds away from weakening and falling over.

"Tell me Wooyoung, do you think a lot about me lately?"

"Er," I start, because I genuinely don't know how to answer that. It'll sound creepy if I say yes, and if I say no, then I'll be lying to San. And the thought of lying to him makes this feeling of dread envelope my insides. "I..."

"Don't lie to me," San commands. His eyes keep observing my wrist, his fingers still stroking over the skin. His eyes are now narrowed, the enchanting red in them dimming. I resist the urge to hold his face in my hands and smoothen out his frown.

"I, well," I start, feeling all sorts of shy at the way San proceeds to look at me. His gaze is as intense as it can be, as if he's trying to pierce through my mind and discover every little part of me. It's like he's staring right into my soul. "I think about you, yeah."

"A lot?" San questions. "Like, whether I'm awake? Where I am most of the time? The things I like and dislike? My personality? You...you want to figure them all out?"

His voice is as soft as the summer's breeze, and it falters slightly towards the end like he's nervous about what my response will be.

"Uh -- yeah, kind of." I bite my lip. "But I don't do it in a weird way, though. I just...want to know how you are." Fuck, my heart feels like its gonna pop out of my chest anytime soon.

My heart though can't seem to catch a break, because the next thing I know, San is placing another hand on my chest.

"I bit you, so I need to know if I caused something that shouldn't have happened to you," he explains, but his palm slightly shakes and he gulps, avoiding my eyes.

"...Do you dream a lot about me?" San continues to ask, his thumb grazing over my clothed chest. My heart is beating so quickly now that I fear he'll feel it right under his fingertips. "Like, see my face in your dreams and us hanging out and stuff?"

Why are you asking me these questions? I want to say, but my tongue feels too heavy in my mouth. Fucking beads of sweat are forming at my temples, and the more I stare at San, the more desirable he looks. Even when he's just woken up and he's dressed so casually, I still want to be nothing less than close to him.

"Sometimes," I answer honestly. Before I can get another word in though, something foreign -- like some kind of invisible rope -- slithers under my skin, leaving coolness in its wake. It tugs and squeezes around my heart, burning and freezing it at the same time. My skin grows increasingly warm, and that strange sensation lunges me straight at San as if its pushing me to him.

I let out a gasp as our noses bump, chins grazing and our lips mere millimeters away from touching. I feel like kissing him, in fact I wanna kiss him right now.

San's eyes are wide, staring at me but not at me. It seems like he's got what he's searching for, because he steps away, his stance growing much more awkward.

Fuck, what did I just do?? I repeatedly ask myself. You freaking idiot.

"That wasn't you," is all San says, and it gets me even more confused than ever. He looks breathless, the most disoriented I've ever seen him. "I need to talk to you about something, but we should go take a shower and get ready first."

Together? A small voice asks in my head, but it doesn't sound like it belongs there. My body only feels even more hot, a newfound headache pounding away at my brain.

"S-Sure," I stutter. I feel like a total mess, and the fact that San and I nearly kissed makes it worse. God, what was I thinking? What if I only succeeded in making things more tense between us?

"You first," San tells me, but he's still not looking in my direction. Wariness shadows my chest, because right now I feel like I've done something wrong.

"Okay," I reply. I want to say more -- I want to say so much more, but I just head past him and rush into the hallway, unable to even breathe properly.

In the shower, all I can think about is San, San, San. I think about how worried he first looked, then about his confusing words, and then about how close we were to kissing each other. And right then I feel like an idiot once more, because fuck, I messed up.

I really messed up.

• • •

Freshly showered and donned in comfortable but oversized clothes, my lilac coloured hair in damp waves, I race into the kitchenette, my entire body in a frenzy.

I really need some cereal right now, I hurriedly think, but as soon as I open up the cupboards for those magical boxes, the sound of water running interrupts my thoughts.

I think about what happened between San and I for what seems to be the millionth time only this morning. Our lips nearly grazed, and at that point in time, I'd seen San briefly shut his eyes, almost like he'd wanted it.

Stupid Wooyoung, I chastise myself. You're probably kidding yourself at this point.

I head back into my room and get my wand, as well as the spell book in the first drawer. I'd hardly seen San eat anything while we'd been at that Magik Flight game with the rest of our friends, and although he's said nothing about it, I can still feel that he probably needs something now.

So I hop into the kitchen and, with a flicker of my fingers, the spell book floats and opens to its last pages, something akin to golden dust sprinkled all around it.

I twist my wand around, wondering which recipe spell I can utter, since I can't really cook for shit.

San seems to like doughy stuff, so maybe...pastries? I'm doing this because I want to, and also majorly because I don't want him getting angry or turning awkward with me again. I can't ruin things with him when he's just begun stepping out of his shell.

Luckily, I'm able to make (with magic, of course) these highly popularized pastries called Teeth-Melters in the nick of time, because San heads out into the livingroom not too long after.

I place the tray of pastries on the table in front of the couch, flashing a smile at San that I hope doesn't reflect just how batshit nervous I am right now.

"Uh, hey," I begin, and then my voice fucking cracks. I clear my throat, cursing myself to hell and back, but surprisingly, San just chuckles, walking closer to where I am.

I feel immense relief, and then I pat the couch seat, urging him to take a sit on it. The furniture immediately turns into a calming blue colour, but I'm not fazed by it. It does that sometimes.

"What are these?" San asks, peering at me with those enticing eyes of his under his dark grey locks.

I place a glass cup full of this dense blue liquid next to the teeth melters, and then pick up one of the pastries. It's round and a plain peach colour, while the other five on the tray have several other colours that remind me of a rainbow.

"They're called Teeth-Melters," I state, dropping into the seat next to San. I have to laugh when San's lips part in mild shock at the name. "They're aren't harmful like the name suggests, though. I used to eat this a lot with others when I lived with my parents, because it felt like your teeth melted once you bit it, hence the name. But like, in a positive way," I explain. "They also change your hair colour for like a minute, so that's that."

San stares at me for a couple more moments, which swiftly makes me nervous.

"What?" I question.

"You don't seem happy," he starts, "when talking about your parents."

"Ah, that." I rub the back of my neck and look away. I hadn't even noticed that. "Well, uh, my parents divorced so I talk to my mom more often now."

San slowly nods. "I'm sorry," he apologizes. "It must've been hard telling me this."

"It's okay, I -- "

San takes a neon green teeth-melter and scoots closer to me, our faces only centimeters apart. "Take a bite."

I only nod, unable to say no, and bite into the pastry. It's soft and solid at first like always, but then turns gooey and almost liquid-like, filling my mouth with a sweet apple flavour. My teeth feel like they're disintegrating.

"And the liquid," San continues, his eyes not leaving mine, "what's it used for?"

"To uh," I gulp, "heighten the experience."

And so San holds the cup to my lips, and I swallow, the cold liquid enhancing the flavour. "How is it?"

"Uh, great?" I stammer. I made the pastry purposefully for San, but I can't complain about this either.

San leans back and smiles, pointing at my hair. "You look like a highlighter pen now."

I just laugh, my cheeks all warm due to San feeding me, as well as his gorgeous smile. But I will myself not to think about any embarrassing thoughts, now that I know that San can read minds.

"You should try them too," I suggest. "While we talk."

San's smile fades off, but he doesn't look unhappy. He looks unwilling, rather, and chews on an orange teeth-melter in thought. "...Okay, before I can explain what I think happened to you," he then drinks from the glass cup, "I'll have to tell you about my family."

I nod, very curious. "Okay."

By now, San's hair has transformed into this lively orange, reminding me of flames dancing over the firewood at the many magic camps I attended as a kid. Nostalgia creeps over me, but I don't think too deeply about it.

Despite the obnoxiously bright colour, San still manages to pull it off extremely well.

"Okay, I'll start after I chew a little bit more because I feel like my teeth are about to fucking fall off," San tells me, and I can't help but laugh. "This isn't a laughing matter though."

His deadpan tone only amuses me further, causing him to playfully glare at me.

"Okay, okay." I raise my hands in surrender. "I'll stop. Continue."

"I know you've probably noticed," San tells me, "but I'm not a normal vampire. Like, at all."

"But that's okay though," I reassure. "You're you, and that's what matters."

San's eyes flash a brighter red, a shy smile growing on his lips. "You're too nice, it makes me wanna... barf."

My eyebrows raise in disbelief. "Hey!"

San rolls his eyes, but he's full on grinning now. "Anyway, a lot of the times, I'm perfectly fine. And then all of a sudden I crave something that isn't blood, wanna sleep and get hungry, which vampires usually don't experience."

He takes another bite of his teeth-melter. "It's because...my mom and dad aren't from the same race."

I nod, urging him to go on. By now, my curiosity's fully piqued. I wanna know more and more about him.

"Mom's a demon, and my dad was half-vampire, half-human."

I pause, because I certainly don't expect this. I think over his words, and one thing sticks out to me. "...Was?"

San takes a sip out of the glass cup, his gaze troubled and this little pout on his lips. "He's dead."

Guilt stings my heart. "I'm sorry," I quickly reply. "I didn't mean to upset you."

San shakes his head, his right hand patting mine. "Nah, it's fine. I never really knew him since he died when I was just a few months old."

That just makes me feel worse.

"Since vampires and demons age pretty slowly, my parents met each other quite some time ago. Their species disliked each other from the start, but that didn't stop them from loving each other. And then, the vampires and demons had a war, and my father died in it. He didn't even get to see me before he went, and because of his death my mom went into hiding, leaving me with my father's mom, also known as my grandma."

Wooyoung, don't do anything rash, a voice warns me as soon as I inch closer to San. He stares directly at me with those mystifying eyes of his, and I wrap an arm around his shoulders.

"I'm really sorry you lost your dad," I whisper. "I was taught about that war in primary school, but I had no idea your parents were involved in it..."

San doesn't move away. Instead, he sinks right into me. "Woo, it's fine."

Woo. My ears burn. "But -- "

"Shh," San says. "Okay, so where were we? Oh, right. My mom disappeared so my grandma had to raise me. She'd married a human but outlived him, so that was why my dad had human blood in him."

"Your family seems to be super into interracial relationships," I utter, but feel like slapping myself silly after. Oh my god, Wooyoung. Why can't you keep your mouth shut for once?

I cough. "I'm sorry."

San laughs out loud, surprising me. "Oh my god, I just realized that." He glances at me, his cute dimples appearing. "They really do."

I look away, feeling really freaking anxious for no reason at all. "Okay, uhm, what else?"

"Oh, uh," San's eyes shift somewhere else. "When I was born, I was completely human."

"Really?"

"Yeah," San nods. "I never showed traits of being a vampire or a demon, I was just me. But grandma assured me that it was okay. So, I lived the first fifteen years of my life as a human, but then, out of nowhere, my eyes turned red, I grew fangs and I had this insane thirst for blood. The first year was a horrible one, since I had to adjust myself with my new body."

I recall the first few weeks of San being my roommate, times where I noticed how he never really seemed to like blood in the first place. I remember the rare times he blushed like a human, and the time at Hongjoong's home where his stomach rumbled 'cause he got hungry. Everything seemed to make sense now.

"I felt misplaced, felt like a freak like, all the time, but grandma always helped me through it. Since I studied at home for most of my life, I didn't have to worry about any embarrassing things happening when others were around. But at a certain point, I wanted to go out and socialize." San huffs a breath, looking at me. "And that's how I landed myself here. I bet you noticed my lack of social skills when you first got me as a roommate."

"I mean," I rub my neck. "I just thought you were a really shy guy. And kinda intimidating."

San chuckles. He takes another teeth-melter, a yellow one this time. He chews on it, one index finger dramatically raised like he's trying to tell me to wait. I snicker, loving how outspoken he's gotten.

"Your teeth won't actually fall out, you know? It's just an illusio -- "

"Shhh." San leans further into the couch and into my shoulder, his fox-like eyes surveying my face. "Also... I feel like my demon blood is gradually coming to the surface."

"Is that why..." I trail off, wanting to talk about that night where I'd seen his aura.

San reads my mind. "Yes. There's also this thing that demons used to do long ago..." He stares at my arm. "Can I hold your right wrist?"

I offer my wrist to him, loving the way his fingers run over my skin. Stop being a creep.

San lightly presses against the area he'd bitten. "To gain souls, they'd bite into their victims like a vampire would, but then gradually gain control over their very being until the victim becomes no more than a robot that obeys their every command."

My lips part in surprise. "What? Really?"

"Yeah..." San sighs. "I fear I might have done the same thing to you accidentally."

"E-Earlier, when I -- " I stutter like an awkward mess. "When we almost -- " I pause again. "There'd been something pushing me closer to you. It -- it was so weird."

San purses his lips, looking highly apologetic. "I think I somehow generated it."

What San just told me doesn't fail to frighten me, because becoming someone another person gradually gains control over doesn't sound too nice, even if that other person is supposedly San.

"Can we fix it?" I ask.

"I don't know."

"I have a Wish Ball in my room that mom gifted me for my birthday yesterday. Maybe that can solve the problem," I answer, because hearing San's defeated tone makes the coils of anxiety in my stomach tighten.

I grab my wand and point it in the direction of my room, and a few seconds later the ball levitates towards us, rolling to a stop beside my foot.

I stand up to kneel beside it, while San looks undeniably curious, his face mirroring that of an expectant child's.

"It should work," I mutter. I slot my wand into its allocated compartment. Its faint maroon glow turns into an electric blue mist. I clasp my hands. "I Wish the effects of San's bite will be reversed."

I keep my voice levelled and clear so the ball can hear me properly, and then San and I wait, watching as it continues to give off this blue fog.

Then the fog turns into an angry red.

"Fuck," I curse.

"What's wrong?" San asks me.

"The wish got rejected." I exhale a hard breath, and then try again. "I Wish that I regain back my free will right this second."

The ball glows an even harsher red.

I bite my lip, feeling frustrated. I pull out my smokey grey wand and cast the ball back into my room, before running my hands through my hair. "Okay, so...maybe the Wish Ball doesn't work because that demon controlling thing is not part of its turf."

"Shit, oh my god," San panics. "This is all my fault."

"No, it's not," I reply. "You didn't know, so it's fine."

"It's not fine. You could end up losing your soul to me just because I bit you," San presses, his voice both firm and worried.

I hold his arms, lowering my hands until they reach his elbows. San immediately stops, looking me in the eye. "Just... Relax, okay? Everything will be fine. Nothing will happen to me."

San bites his lip, and my eyes unintentionally stare at him for too long. "I'm just really worried."

"You don't need to be..."

"I just..." San's eyes trace all over my features, his gaze hooded.

"Just what?" I ask.

San shortens the distance between us and kisses me.

Slowly, languidly, like he's trying to savour this moment as long as he possibly can. His lips melt against mine, tasting of sweet lemonade, and my heartbeat thumps loudly against my eardrums.

San kisses me deeper, his fingers fisting themselves in my hair. I don't waste time in kissing him back, our breaths intermingling and my hands finding solace around his slim waist.

God, I feel so warm. San's gaze is smouldering, and so, so attractive. He looks at me like I'm heaven on earth, and his every touch sends heat sizzling under my skin.

A million thoughts swarm my mind, but they're too quick to even decipher them. I can't even believe that this moment is real. Can't believe that this beautiful boy is in my arms, his lips on mine.

San's arms wrap around my neck, our heaving chests tightly pressed together. His eyes are a vibrant red, his cheeks tinted pink.

"I," I begin, but my throat feels so dry. "S-San..."

San trails kisses down the slope of my neck, slow and comforting, which knocks the wind right out of me. "I like you, Wooyoung," he whispers between pecks, unable to meet my gaze. "I've liked you a lot... Ever since I first saw you."

I lean in and connect our lips once again, wanting to feel more of him.

His kisses are intense, as if there's magic ingrained in his lips, and the sheer passion in them makes my face burn and leaves me breathless.

I like you too, San, I think. I've liked you for a while, and now that I think about it, you were always on my mind from the start.

Before I can say anything though, a loud knock from the door intercepts its way into our dorm, causing San and I to spring apart.

"Hey losers, open up! We've been calling y'all's phones since forever." Yeosang.

"We're going to town to get some food and we want you guys to join us!" Mingi.

Why are they so freaking loud?? I think. Disappointment nibbles away at my core, because they couldn't have showed up at a worse time.

San looks away, shy written all over his body language. His ears are pink.

"San?" I whisper.

His ears turn a darker shade of pink.

"W-We should uh, go meet with them outside. Um," San pulls at his oversized shirt, a frown of disdain crossing his face. "No, not with t-these clothes, but with other ones -- I mean, we need to dress well, but like, casually. But not too casual -- "

I pull him into a hug, and he gasps at first, but quickly settles into my hold. My fingers stroke his hair. "You kissed me really good."

San's fingers fist my shirt. "Gosh, I'm embarrassed."

Don't be, I think. You can hear me, right?

San nods against the crook of my neck. Yes.

You're a great kisser, and I like you too.

"San, Wooyoung," Yeosang states, knocking on the door again. "What are you both doing in there? Making out?"

"Shut up," I snap. I stare at San. "We'll talk about this later, alright? But for now, let's just hang out with our friends and enjoy ourselves."

San nods. "Of course." He leans in and kisses my cheek, which pleasantly catches me by surprise. My heart leaps.

"I think they're dead," Mingi says behind the door.

"No we're not," I reply as an attempt to distract myself from how fast my heart's beating.

It doesn't work.

• • •

a/n: thoughts?