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i never expected that you could
have a broken heart and
love with it too, so much that
it doesn't seem broken at all

──● peter pan
PETER PAN

╚═════*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*═════╝

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Food Poisoning.

How did I even get Food Poisoning anyway?

Junpei guessed he was a little at fault for this, he probably should have looked at the expiration date for the yogurt he'd eaten in Ruth's fridge. His best friend had been distraught upon finding out, but really it wasn't her fault either, she'd just forgotten about it. At the very least, it now was a permanent reminder for Junpei to check expiration dates before consuming any dairy products.

I'm never eating yogurt again.

Sighing, Junpei rolled over on his side, squinting outside of the bedroom window across from his bed, watching the occassional darting pigeon. It was a beautiful day outside, the sky was clear and pristine and rays of scattered sunbolts darted across the trees. 

The sight forced a scowl across his face.

Stupid food poisoning.

It would have been a great day to go on a run. Although there were the occassional overly hot days in the month of April, for the most part, the weather was fairly consistent in warmth. There were a few days left of April until May, which is where a majority of the storms were to be predicted to be this year. Potentially some into early June as well. He'd hoped to at least get a few runs in. Although, with warmer weather did come the opportunity of more night runs, one of his favorite kinds.

It wasn't all bad. He was feeling better since he'd vomited early that morning, just after two a.m., and hopefully all of it was out of his system now. Still, his siblings would probably rip him apart before letting him go out on a run without a twenty-four hour wait after the last time he threw up. Not to mention, they were incredibly understanding about the whole secret boyfriend thing all things considered. Seth said the fact that Junpei had been okay probably softened the blow of the entire thing.

Seth.

Even the stupid thought of him warmed Junpei a little, holding the pillow in his arms to his chest tighter. He did kinda wish Seth was here right now, he always knew exactly what to say to help any kind of negatively impacting emotion, but he didn't want to pull Seth away from anything he might be busy with today anyway. It wouldn't really be fair of him, especially since he'd worried pretty much everyone in his life so much this past week. 

"Junpei?"

He blinked hard, racing back to the surface of his thoughts as he glanced toward the door, seeing his father peak his head into the now opening door. "Oh, hey dad." Jun pushed himself up on his bed with his arms, crossing his legs and keeping the pillow clutched in his arms.

"Hey." His smile was instantaneous, and he just stayed halfway in the door for a moment "I was just coming up to check on you, is it alright if I come in?" Junpei fought his own smile back. Dai had always been really big on boundries, especially because he adopted a bunch of traumatized children, and it really didn't matter how old they were, he still checked when he came into their personal spaces. It was one of the many things that made Jun feel so safe when he was a kid. It was still one of the many things that his father did to make them feel safe.

"Sure." Junpei nodded, seeing his father's face brighten as he stepped in the room, heading to sit on the bed beside him.

"Are you feeling better then?"

"Mhm." He had been feeling better, at least mostly so. He thought he was done throwing up at the least, which was one thing he was incredibly relieved by. He didn't exactly have an exact fear of throwing up, but he doubted there was anyone who found it even remotely enjoyable. 

"I didn't just mean with the poisoning thing, Jun. I wanted to check on how you're feeling about everything. There's been a lot happening this month in your life- I mean, your mother's passing, of course, and also, you got a boyfriend, and then food poisoning." His father's eyes were warm, as they often were, voice soft and gentle like it was when discussing something that might need a more delicate touch.

Junpei only smiled, shaking his head. "Well, technically I started dating Seth right after we got back from California, but yeah, I get what you mean." he fell silent for a moment, summoning some of the buried feelings that had exploded in the past two days. "I think so. I mean, I don't feel great about all of it- not the boyfriend part, Seth is amazing, but with..mom. I guess." Hesitance hovered over his words, and he raised his eyes to meet his father's. "Is it bad that I call her mom? I mean, she wasn't really my mom- like Raine was more my mom than she ever was, but, i'm really not sure what else to call her." It felt wrong sometimes, to call her that, like he was justifying her very unmotherly like behaviour instead of facing it directly.

His father just gently set his hand on his arm. "It doesn't make you a bad person to think of your biological mother as your mother, even if she never acted like it. I know it's a hard thing to face, and it's not something I understand very well from your perspective." He smiled again, squeezing his arm reassuringly. "But if you want to refer to her as your mom, or Sara, or not refer to her at all, I'm not going to belittle you for it, or for how you're feeling about all of it." He sighed, "You have every right to be angry, and unemotional, but you also have the right to feel upset, or sad, or alone because of it. There's no right answer to grief, Junpei." 

Junpei felt familiar emotion choke his chest, but he nodded slowly, letting the words sink in. His dad was right, there wasn't one answer in how to grieve someone, especially in such a complex relationship. Instead, he let his own thoughts turn to that night, when he ran from the house.

Suga.

Suga had been there, his father's assistant. Junpei frowned slightly, turning back to meet his eyes with his parent again. "Why was Suga there? The night when everything happened."

This time, hesitance crossed over his father's features. "Oh, well, we're friends." Junpei raised his eyebrow, holding the pillow tighter, scanning his eyes before he relented. "I called him after I got the news. He's, I don't know, he just was the person I wanted to talk to after hearing it."

"So he came over?"

"Junpei-"

"Dad." Jun just reached for his father's hand, taking it, "We don't have to talk about it. It's good to have friends like that."

"It's not like that, Jun, he just-" his father sighed, some kind of heavy sounding thing. The kind of sigh that is only made when a weight is rested on his chest. "I realized that I don't really have friends, or just people who make me happy, and well- Dexter invited me to his DnD campaign, and I met Suga through that, so.."

"You really don't have to justify anything, Dad." Junpei's the one who smiled this time. "And if you are interested in him, it's okay, okay?"

His father stared at him for a minute, then huffed an anxious laugh, shaking his head slightly before reaching up to ruffle his hair "Christ Jun, stop growing up so quickly."

"I"m literally an adult."

"Yeah, I hate being an adult." His dad grinned, expertly avoiding whatever conversation they'd been having a moment ago, instead rising to his feet, but looked up as there was another knock on the door. Both he and Junpei's face mirrored confusion before his dad opened the door, and Junpei's heart skipped a beat at the sight.

Seth.

His boyfriend was there, with a bright grin on his face per usual. "Oh! Mr. Morrigan, it's great to see you, I just came by to check on Junpei."

Junpei watched his father's face for a moment, before feeling warmth swell in his chest as his features brightened in turn, chuckling softly as he patted Seth's shoulder. "Mr. Morrigan makes me feel old, Dai is fine, Seth. And I'm sure Jun appreciates it, and so do I." Then only smiled, excusing himself as he headed back down the hallway to his own office. Unfortunately, leaving all of Junpei's questions about Suga unanswered.

Next time then.

Instead, he turned back to his boyfriend, watching Seth's own features soften, closing the door gently before walking over to him. Junpei felt warmth run down his spine, chasing away any chills of any kind as Seth cupped his face with both hands, kissing the top of his head. "Hey pretty boy, how are you feeling?" 

He leaned into the touch, sighing as he shrugged back at the question. "Okay. I'm done throwing up, I think. And I don't feel as dizzy or anything."

"Sounds like i'm the perfect antidote, obviously." His flirtatious grin quickly made a reappearence, and Junpei sighed, a dramatic thing before playfully shoving him away, flopping back over on his side. He heard Seth laugh, and the sound sent that same shimmering feeling up his face. To avoid his smile being seen, Junpei held the pillow tighter, pushing half his face in it. "Oh, you're such a baby, Jun." his hand slid around his waist, pulling him back to at the very least be on his back so Jun was looking up at him.

Petulantly, Junpei puffed out his cheeks. "I'm your baby, though."

"Mm. I guess you are." Seth's smile was warm. Fond, as it always was before he planted another sunshine kiss onto his forehead.

Junpei pushed himself up on his elbows then, letting his pillow fall. "You're not gonna kiss me for real?"

Seth sighed back, angling his arm over Junpei to lean back over him a little. "When was the last time you threw up?"

"This morning, like really early."

"You brush your teeth after?"

Junpei nodded this time, feeling heat flare up over his cheeks momentarily. "I used mouthwash too."

"I don't know, you have been sick." Seth's tone turned teasing, eyes glittering with mischief as he hovered over Junpei's mouth. The silence was penetrating, and he couldn't really fight the crawling warmth that reached his face and towards his ears. "You really want a kiss, Junpei?"

"Prick."

"Rude." His voice was nothing more than a whisper, just over Junpei's mouth before his hand cupped his face, eyes still shining with charisma. Junpei debated on the two options in his head, maybe three. He could pull away, but that would just lead to more teasing. He could kiss Seth himself, but it felt a little more gratifying for Seth to do it, especially when Junpei had asked, or he could just wait.

Fortunately, Seth didn't give him much longer to decide, and Jun felt lips against his own, his eyes fluttering shut as his heart rammed in his chest. It really hadn't changed. No matter how many times Seth kissed him, it felt like his heart was going to either stop, or just shatter into a thousand peices. Junpei weaved his arms around his boyfriend's neck, letting the butterflies in his stomach swarm.

What a glorious way to go out.

It wasn't some breathy peck either, it was an actual kiss, one that left you just a little breathless at the end. Something no doubt that Seth would hold over Junpei's head like a personal trophy. Not that he really minded, because his boyfriend kissed him so gently, held him like something to be cherished and loved for all of eternity. So when he pulled away, disconnecting them from each other and watching Junpei's eyes open again, he smiled that deliciously wicked grin.

"Hey, I thought of a new nickname for you."

"I thought pretty boy was my nickname."

Seths' laugh was breathy, and the thought that Junpei made him breathless too shone through his thoughts a little too brightly to just ignore. Seth clearly noticed the lingering smile, and offered a last lingering kiss against his mouth before continuing. "Pretty boy is just a fact. It's not your pet name."

"oh." The unexpected compliment again sent a re-ignited flush up his cheeks. Instead, he met his partner's glittering eyes again, locking onto them like they were the only thing in the world to look at. "So what is my pet name then?"

"How 'bout Junbug?"

Oh.

Junpei felt that sticky warmth rise again in his chest, alongside that consistantly rising emotion that always seemed to become emphasized in Seth's presence.

Safe.

"Jun?" Seth's voice fell into something soft, his hand stroking Junpei's cheek again. "If you don't like it, it's okay, there are lots of wonderful pet names, I just thought that-"

"No." Junpei smiled, his own affection shining through his softened features. "No, I like it. Really."

"Well then." Immediately his features shifted again, pressing a kiss to one of the faded freckles of his childhood. "What are you thinking about Junbug?"

A giggle pushed out of his chest at the sunshine kisses, cheerfully keeping his arms around Seth's neck. "Honestly, about when you picked me up on the trail. That was pretty hot."

"Yeah?" His affection shifted to the crook of his neck, and the feeling sent a tickle down his spine as another giggle echoed from Junpei's mouth. 

"Yeah- who are you, Prince Charming?"

"Maybe." Seth pulled back then, grinning down at him, "Does that make you some kind of princess then?"

"Oh- I guess so." Junpei sighed, looking up at the ceiling as the thought of the Disney Magic reflooded his thoughts. "I don't know which one I'd be though."

"Well.." Seth adjusted a bit, propping himself up on his elbow to half-lay beside Junpei, clearly thinking for a moment. "How about Snow White? Cause of the poisoning thing?"

Oh my God.

The food poisoning. The death of his mother. The evil persona of his mother. His found family here in the Morrigan house. Junpei blinked hard, turning to face his boyfriend as a slow, even smile worked up his face. Seth just raised his eyebrow, "What?"

"Oh my God Seth, you're a genius." Junpei giggled again, relief seething through him at the explanation, throwing his arms around his boyfriend again. Seth, clearly pleasently surprised, laughed himself, kissing Junpei gently again as he shifted once again to brace himself over him.

"Well, this genius is going to go get you some food, alright? I talked to your brother downstairs before coming up here- Elijah, and he's cutting apples up and said he was cutting some for you. So i'm gonna go get you some Junbug." He grinned again, climbing off the bed and just stretching his arms. Junpei just turned on his side again, giggling as Seth turned back to him. "Green or red?"

"Red." Then sighed "Oh, what should we watch when you come back?"

"Oh- how about that show on Disney, the one you're really upset about it being canceled."

"The Owl House??"

"Yeah." Seth turned, sighing when he saw mock dissapointment cross over his face. "No, I haven't watched it yet, It's not my fault Junpei."

"We're breaking up." Seth laughed that time, kissing Junpei's head again, and the psuedo anger on Jun's face dissipated almost immediately. "Hurry."

"I know Jun, that's like my specialty." Seth left him with a lingering kiss before turning and quickly heading down the hall to the stairs. Junpei just smiled again, flopping back on his bed, and waited for a breathe of a moment.

That's all it took for the red magic to explode from his book, painting his room in glittering apple orchards, and a single world to be written in the air, forcing a smile from his face.

Grief.

✦

✦ WYN ✦

- part eight is finished !!

- ngl i totally skipped 
through this arc, but tbh
i just really loved writing
this one <3 

- lemme know how you 
felt about it pls !!

no question today ! as part
eight is finished , and we'll be
moving to part nine shortly !
so i need all opinions on merlene
done as soon as possible <3
if this is already done feel free
to just comment as such !

──● answers