「I will not die in the night
but in the light
of the sun and the ashes
of this world in my lungs」

♫hollywood undead; city

✩ h o n g j o o n g ✩

The roar of a wild tiger - deafening, angry.

It thundered through the hallways and caused everyone to stop whatever they were doing, and look around in confusion and distress.

Hongjoong let his hands fall from his face, uncovering his red eyes and the tears that streamed down his flushed cheeks.

Whoever, or whatever, he had become was tearing up a war in his mind. His old self was fighting to get out, but the new side created by the hands of evil was stronger - holding him down, drowning him.

But when the sound of the loud scream echoing outside his door, he looked up and as he got up he heard how things were being tossed around aggressively, thrown against the wall, breaking and shattering.

He stumbled into the hallway, and saw others peeking out from their rooms, but staying behind the little safety of their doors. Whenever his eyes met others', they quickly disappeared again. Hongjoong followed the sound, but with every step he took he felt how the entire atmosphere was changing around him.

It was in the air. Something terrible had happened.

Then he saw it, and his eyes widened up in shock and horror, while his face went pale. His heart was beating so fast it hurt, as he stared into the only single room in the mansion.

Yeosang's room.

Blood on the walls, running down in helpless lines from the words written with it, on the white wallpaper, 'do not squander time'.

Hongjoong's eyes unwilling moved downwards, his stomach turning and the air felt like thick and heavy in his lungs.

Two masked guards dressed in black were standing in the middle of the room, while Seonghwa was sitting on his knees, bent down with his black hair covering his face, and frustrated sounds kept falling from his lips. His hands were shaking, something Hongjoong had never seen happen before, when they carefully reached out and touched the pale skin under him.

The grey eyes were half-closed, as life was half-way gone as well. Yeosang didn't move, he was just lying there, flat on the floor, bleeding out from the open wounds on his body, and with his hand clenched around something.

One step closer, and Hongjoong knew what it was, or what it had been. A small plastic bag, with a little leftover of white powder inside, looking like a thin layer of fairy dust. Whatever amount had been there to begin with was gone, serving as Yeosang's only way out of hell.

"Get the car!" Seonghwa yelled with frustrated gestures that showed how he wasn't sure if he should pick the younger up or not. One of the guards quickly left the room, storming through Hongjoong who was still standing as frozen in the doorway.

He could have been wrong, he was a little off himself, but he swore that Yeosang's eyes found their way to his, and they looked at him with more peace than Hongjoong had ever seen before in that deep ocean of grey. Then, the younger closed his eyes, and Hongjoong felt like he was falling right in his spot.

Seonghwa's agonizing cries became only a distant noise, while Hongjoong just kept falling. The guard that stayed behind received a call through his ear piece, and he gestured towards Seonghwa that the car was ready.

"Don't do this to me, my love... Please, don't," Seonghwa whispered, stroking Yeosang's cheek as the guard lifted the unconscious body from the floor.

As the older got up as well, turning to face Hongjoong, his dark eyes had created something that looked like tears, but with a quick motion of his head, he let his hair sway down in front of his eyes, and when passing by Hongjoong he reached into his pocket for something.

"Take this," he said, handing over his work phone. "Let everyone who contacts me know I don't have time right now! I trust you, Hongjoong. I... I just need to fix this!"

The phone was shoved into his hand, and soon he was left alone in the destroyed room. He took one last look at the painful message on the wall, before leaving as well. Do not squander time -

"- that is the stuff life is made of," he mumbled under his breath, as he slowly closed the door.

He knew that quote far too well, it had been his favorite ever since he saw it being used in his beloved movie Gone with the Wind, something that everyone close to him knew of. But now it had gotten a whole new meaning, one he wasn't too sure he liked at all.

✩

Hongjoong moved around his small bedroom feeling utterly restless. Seonghwa's phone was on the nightstand, and it kept buzzing, but Hongjoong was too scared to pick it up.

It had been the same number every time so far, and while he assumed it was something important, he was still to nervous to answer the call. Not because he was scared of who he might talk to, but if he messed up Seonghwa's rage would rain down over him, and that was the last thing he wanted.

But, Seonghwa did tell him to do it, and by the seventh time he finally took a deep breath and found just enough courage to pick up.

"H-hello?" he mumbled.

"Who is this? Where is Seonghwa?" A voice asked, sounding a bit stressed out on the other end.

"He... He is busy, he won't be able to reach for the next few days..."

Silence.

Hongjoong sat down on his bed, staring at the wall while wondering if he should just hang up.

"Who am I talking to now then?" the person then asked.

"... Hongjoong."

Silence again.

"Hongjoong?" Another few seconds without a sound, but the voice changed when the stranger spoke his name. "I have a job for you then. It is extremely important that it'll be done tonight."

"I'm not sure that..." Hongjoong started off, but he was cut off within seconds.

"You just have to come pick something up. As I said, it is extremely important. I'll send a car for you, and if anyone asks just tell them my name, they all know me."

"I don't know your name though..."

"It's Xu Minghao." - and then he hung up.

✩

After quite a long car ride, the first time he had been outside since he came to the mansion, Hongjoong found himself in a place he had never been to before. He was taken to an old house in the furthest corner of the city, and from the outside it didn't look impressive at all - which confused him since this Xu Minghao sounded like such a big shot.

Tall trees were hovering over the house, keeping it in the shadows, and almost unnoticeable for strangers passing.

The old wooden door was creaking when he pushed it open, and he was led into the dark house by two armed men. He should probably feel scared, but after getting to know Seonghwa, it definitely took a lot more to scare him now.

"Down this way, through the door," one of the men said to him, gesturing down a narrow corridor, but stopping in his steps as he spoke. Hongjoong nodded and continued on his own.

He entered a room that looked surprisingly well kept, compared to the rest of the house. Pretty carpets on the floor, beautiful paintings on the wall, and a few furniture here and there.

As his eyes moved across the room, a strange sparkle caught his attention.

On the table underneath one of the windows, catching the light of the table lamp on the corner, was something Hongjoong hadn't seen in a long time. His eyes widened up, as he slowly stepped closer - it couldn't be...

His fingers grazed over the cold surface of the silver watch in front of him, and he just stared at it - confused, and almost too shocked to move at all. But when a noise from one of the dark corners was heard, he flinched in his spot.

Hongjoong turned his head, heart in his throat while he stared into the darkness. A silhouette came towards him, and his eyes fought to find focus in the dark. Hongjoong froze complete, dropping the watch onto the floor, when something he hadn't heard in a long time graced his ears.

A velvety voice that took him back in time.

Back to when baby pink hair was swaying in front of his eyes, back to when two Dirty Martinis with a stranger changed his life, with diamonds around his neck - and when love felt so close he dared to believe it actually existed.

"Hey princess. Did you miss me?"

✩

A/N: I hope you're well entertained ;')))