A brief silence which was broken by strangled cries.

Wooyoung's pained cries filled the air, echoing off the trees and causing a few birds to scattered from the branch in which they rested as they too observed the scene.

He screams. He cries and he screams some more. As he stared at San's unmoving body. He fights against the two men that now held him but it was no use. It was as though the energy had been drained out of him. His vision was blurred with tears as he wailed loudly.

Jongho was in complete and utter shock. Seonghwa's eyes wide and wet as tears quickly threatened to fall.

Wooyoung's heart ached. It hurt so bad as he went through all the emotion he experienced that windy night alone. Except this time it was amplified because he witnessed it all with his own eyes. "Kill me.. please kill me" He begs, shaking and crying uncontrollably.

"Poor little Wooyo" Chiyo's smile drops as she observed him fighting and kicking against the two men that held him. "No title, disowned by your own father, no lover. All alone" The faintest of smirks curves at her lips as she tosses San's heart in front of him to taunt him further.

"Think again, bitch" San mutters behind her and before she could turn he slices her throat from behind, a horizontal deep cut and right under her chin. She gargles on her blood, hands flying to her throat as blood poured out of the cut.

The two men holding Wooyoung charges at him and San stabs one of them in the neck then rips out the heart of the other.

Once he was sure no one else was around he drops the knife and runs to Wooyoung, dropping to his knees, since the prince had crumbled the ground in middle of San's fight.

"Wooyoung, are you alright?" He places both hands in either side of his face. His bloodied hands painting his pale skin but Wooyoung was too much in shock to notice.

Wooyoung looks at him with confusion. Was he seeing things? He just watched him die. How is he here? "How are you-" Wooyoung breathes out, his voice raspy.

"Arcane magic" Seonghwa calls from behind Wooyoung San wiped the tears that managed to escape from his eyes. "I forgot drows could do that" Seonghwa says with a relieved chuckle.

Wooyoung looked back at him, still confused. "Jongho, help me get the keys to his cuffs" San orders the young vampire who was still in shock from the events that just took place.

"San, w-what's.. I don't-" Wooyoung kept stuttering and stumbling over his words. A wave of relief rushing over him. He wasn't sure what just happened but as long as San was still here Wooyoung didn't care much for the details.

San glances at his clone which still layed on the ground, dead. The clone slowly morphs into a pile of mud, it's pale skin turning brown and clothes merging with its body. (Think clone jutsu from Naruto for my anime fans out there) "I'm still half drow, which means I have access a bit of arcane magic. I just tricked her to try and catch her off guard. I honestly didn't think it would work but hey.." He says with a grin like he'd just told a joke and Wooyoung watches him with lips parted and teary eyes in complete and utter disbelief.

Once Jongho had unlocked his cuffs, Wooyoung hits San on his shoulder. Hard. "Shit" He chokes out as more tears slid down his cheeks. His bottom lip quivered. "Don't ever do something like that again. Seriously" His presses his forehead against San's and San smiles softly.

"I know. I'm sorry I scared you" He caresses his cheek with his thumb  wiping his tears. 'Scared' would be an understatement.

"We should leave" Seonghwa announces as he looks over Chiyo's dead body. Except she's not actually dead and could wake up anytime soon. They would need to stake her. And Wooyoung wanted to be the one to do it.

Jongho was checking on Junkyu and he thankfully had a pulse which meant he was still alive. They would just need to get him into some water, there his quick healing would kick in.

Wooyoung pulls himself to his feet and grabs the stake strapped to one of the men's thighs. Then he stalks to Chiyo's body and squatted. He stared at her empty opened eyes. Oh how he wished she was awake so she could look him in the eyes as he plunged that stake right into her heart.

He wipes the tears and blood from his cheek with the back of his hand then leans into her face. "Go to hell, dog" He growls before ramming the stake in her chest. She doesn't move but her body slowly turns grey, her cheeks sink, and chest becomes hollow. The whites of her eyes become yellow as she slowly turns into an actual corpse.

Wooyoung stands up with a big sigh of relief and he quickly turns to look for San, afraid that he'd disappear if he let him out of his sight for a moment.

The vampire drow was busy staring down at something on the ground and Wooyoung made his way to him to see what he was looking at. It was the syringe which had his blood. And before Wooyoung could say anything San smashed it with his feet, shattering the glass and causing the red liquid to seep into the earth.

San then looks up at him, a small smile on his lips. He tries wiping the smudged blood and mud on his cheeks off but only made it worse and couldn't help but laugh. "We should go find a river so you can wash up"

Wooyoung felt his heart skip at his laugh and he felt another fresh tears of relief quickly rise to his eyes. He laughs too as the tears fell and he quickly pulls San in for a bone crushing hug. "Don't ever leave me" He whispers, his voice shaky.

San hugs him back, rubbing his back and giving him a reassuring squeeze. "I won't. I promise"

San splashes some water on face, the cold easing his tense muscles. He was knee deep in a small river, cleaning up alone while everyone else were busy gathered around a map by the shore devising their next plan of action.

He lifts some water to his hair, raking his fingers through his raven black locks and rinsing the mud and dirt off. Birds sing over head, the water flows steadily and calmly. Beside the sound of the other males talking by the trees, it was quiet.

Seonghwa, who was simply standing over Junkyu's shoulder and listening to them talk, looks up at San and quietly watches him clean.

His dark brown hair was now damp as he'd been the first one to wash up. He silently pushes off the tree he was leaning on and makes his way to the drow-vampire.

"Hey" His voice startles San causing him to flinch.

"Yah-" He hold his chest, laughing at his jumpiness as he turns around and meets the amused lucid gray eyes of Seonghwa.

"Sorry, I thought you heard me coming" He chuckles, his voice scratchy and somewhat deep. He's standing at the river shore but was still within arms reach of San.

"Well I didn't" He says with an embarrassed smile as he scoops up more water to wash his hair. Seonghwa return his smile, his eyes sparkling like translucent pearls and San shifts his gaze away before he let himself get sucked into those damn eyes.

Especially since Wooyoung was just a few feet away.

They stay in silence and he could feel the werewolf's sharp gaze on him. It made the hairs on the back of his neck stand.

San knew how Seonghwa felt about him. He's known since the night they first kissed. And maybe in some alternate universe they could've been something. But in this one it's just not possible. He loves Wooyoung too much to let anything ruin what they have. But he also cares about Seonghwa too much and didn't want to lose him either.

So he sighs after the silence between them slowly turns awkward and he opens his mouth to speak at the same time Seonghwa speaks.

"Seonghwa I-"

"So I wanna-"

They say simultaneously. "You first" Seonghwa blurts faster.

San sits on the large rock that stuck out of the river, water flows around it in a disordered yet steady fashion. "I-" He takes a deep breath. "I care about you, I really really do.. but... you have to let me go" He says in a soft pained voice and could even see the light leave Seonghwa's round eyes a little. "I want us to be friends because I trust you. And even after I gave you no reason to trust me you still helped me and I'll never forget that kindness-"

"Back in Boulia, when we were together-" Seonghwa starts.

"I was sad. And lonely and.. empty. And now I feel terrible for even letting it get that far" San rubs his eyebrows in frustration. But he was frustrated at himself. His heart ached and he knew that deep within him he felt something for the werewolf. Why else would his breath catch in his throat whenever Seonghwa was around or his skin tingle sometimes when they touched? But he had to stuff those feelings in a box and let them sink to the very bottom of the vast complexity that is his heart.

Seonghwa smiles sadly. "You know... when I thought she ripped your heart out I felt like a part of me had died and when I realized it was all a trick I was so relieved I could barely stand. I understand you'll never see me the way I see you and I can't even try to lie and say I'll be ok. Because I'm not. I care about you too. And.. I want to be someone you can depend on and trust and run to for support. I want you to be happy" Seonghwa says with a weak laugh. San felt his chest squeeze at his words and his lips stretch into a weak dimpled smile.

"Thank you" Was all he could will himself to say. His shifts his gaze away and caught his bottom lip between his teeth. Thank you, Seonghwa.

Another brief silence settles. "Do you want me to help you cut your hair?" Seonghwa asks and San looks up at him, surprised at his question. "It's gotten a bit long, don't you think?"

San lifts his fingers, wrapping the chin length wet strands around his index finger. "Yeah I guess you're right" He chuckles.

"I can do it" Wooyoung's voice comes from behind Seonghwa, catching the two men off guard.

Seonghwa just glances at him, looks at San with a tight-lipped smile, then turns to leave. "I'll uh.. go ask Jongho what the plan is" He says curtly before leaving the two lovers alone.

Wooyoung glances at him as he walks past before he shifts his gaze back to San who was now standing again, a meek smile on his thin rose colored lips. Wooyoung couldn't help but return it.

"Hey" San says first.

Wooyoung rolls his pants up to his knees or rather as far up as he could then he began trudging into the river, his need to touch San too great. "Hi" He says with a breathy voice as he places a hand on San's damp cheek.

They stare at each other, Wooyoung's eyes searching San's quietly. He observed how flushed his pale skin appeared as the sunlight hit his face. How water droplets slide down his temple from his dripping dark hair. How his nostrils flared ever so slightly and his bottom lip twitched as if he was going to say something but decided against it last minute. How the very subtle flecks of green in his hazel eyes lit up and sparkled ever so slightly. Wooyoung would never be able to get over how beautiful the man in front of him is.

His thumb gently glides up and down his wet cheek and strong cheek bones. Buy he didn't say anything.

San swallowed, wetting his dry throat, and finally shifts his gaze away, nerves slowly settling in. "Did you.. overhear us?"

He knew vampires were capable of focusing their hearing and he hoped Wooyoung would respect him enough not to eavesdrop on his conversation with Seonghwa but he also wouldn't blame him if he did. If the roles were reversed he probably would've done the same thing.

Wooyoung drops his hand from San's cheek and takes San's hand instead, interlocking their fingers. San wholly welcomed the touch. The contact made his body light up and his knees almost buckle. Just being so close to him made him feel dizzy.

"I may have listened in a little" Wooyoung confesses with the tiniest of pouts. "And I get it now. You thought I was gone and you felt alone. But he was there when I couldn't be. He made you happy when I abandoned you-"

San was quick to shake his head. "Yah- dont put it like that. You didn't abandon me, you were trapped. It's not your fault"

"It's not yours either" Wooyoung retorts.

San give him a half smile before shifting his gaze away once again. "I'm just... so sorry. It feels like I betrayed you. Like I betrayed us"

"It doesn't matter anymore" Wooyoung whispers as he brings him even closer and presses their foreheads together, their noses touching. San closes his eyes, his hand instinctively flies up to Wooyoung's neck, fingers gently kneading the soft hairs at his nape.

"It's like I said last night, I love you. And that will never ever change" He says in a voice so airy it causes San's breath to hitch and his throat to close up. "It doesn't matter what we did or didn't do in the time we were apart. What matters is the now"

San couldn't help the smile that tugs at his lips and the butterflies that scatter in his stomach. "I love you too" His heart sang for one man and one man alone. It'll always be you, Jung Wooyoung.

He leans back a little, wanting to look at him again, and he opens his eyes. Wooyoung smiles brightly at him, genuine and almost childlike. It was a smile too contagious so he smiled back. Then Wooyoung kissed his forehead, his eyelid, his cheek, his nose, his other cheek, his forehead again. He peppered kisses all over his face and San giggled as Wooyoung wraps an arm around his torso. Wooyoung too smiles as he presses kiss after kiss on his damp skin.

Then he kisses the corner of San's mouth and finally, his lips. San sighs a breath of content as his eyes slid close. And he kisses him back.

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

See, I told y'all I wouldn't kill anyone (yet) 😭

Just a notice I'm gonna be taking a week break to study for midterms and finish my papers this week. So sadly next update won't be until Oct 17th or later, at least a week from now :(( but it'll go by fast don't worry.

Happy Thanksgiving to all my fellow Canadians