aryayume

Title: Twisted Harmony (Chapter 2)
Author: aryayume
Genre: Romance/Angst
Pairing: Junseung, Dooseob
Rating: M

(WARNING: This chapter may contain idealogically sensitive material)

Hyunseung slipped under the covers of the bed just seconds before Junhyung walked into the room.

"Junhyung, can we talk for a minute?"

Junhyung froze, recognising the whining tone in Hyunseung's voice. It usually meant that he was really upset or annoyed, and that never bode well. He nodded mutely, staring at the wall straight ahead. A hard lump formed in his throat, and no matter how hard he tried to push it down it wouldn't budge.

"Junhyung, you have something you want to tell me, don't you?"

"Um, not really... I mean, I don't think so... probably not... uh, no..."

"Really? Because I know you do. If you don't, then look at me and say it again."

Junhyung looked desperately for a way out from the hole he had dug for himself, and not quite succeeding.
If only I hadn't got myself into this mess in the first place. Stupid. So stupid. But there's no way out. He'll have to know.
Mentally kicking himself, he sighed and turned towards an expectant face. One expecting answers.

"Hyunseung, I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. I never should have done this. I-I've been visiting Hara. But not anymore. I will make amends, I promise."

Hyunseung's eyes were misting over again, and the shock was evident. A solitary tear wound its way down his cheek. He shook his head.

"W-what did you say you did? I will say I was concerned about you leaving randomly, but I thought better of you. Really."

"Seunggie, I'm sorry. Please. I know what I did was wrong. It won't happen again."

An imploring hand reached out and touched Hyunseung lightly on the arm. He shrank away, falling off the bed, taking most of the blankets with him. He was still refusing to believe that Junhyung had cheated on him, yet part of his mind was telling him it was true. Still in shock, he picked up a few of the sheets and escaped to the tranquil, albeit cold, safety of the spare bedroom. Hyunseung was almost always found in the room whenever he felt upset, and as a result, it was permanently decorated with things that made him feel better. Stuffed toys littered the floor and sat unmoving on the bed. Collapsing on the mattress, he buried his face in a penguin plushie and let the tears flow. The soft fur was somewhat reassuring, but it was the still atmopshere that finally calmed him down.

"Hyunseung? I know you're mad at me, but can you at least give me a chance to explain?"

"Why would you need to explain? For me to listen to you say it was a mistake and it won't happen again isn't going to work. I thought we actually had something going between us, but I guess I was wrong."

The door remained firmly locked, isolating the room, just as Hyunseung had locked his own heart to everyone.
I'd always been good to Junhyung. Did he never want me in the first place? Or is it something else?

Junhyung paced outside the door anxiously. An uncontrolled anger rose like flames, burning him on the inside. He picked up his phone.
He slid the car keys into his pocket and walked around the house, stuffing some clothes and his belongings into a suitcase. He turned and as an afterthough, left a written note on the kitchen counter in the event that Hyunseung might come out of his sanctuary. Then he left, trying not to look back, all the while being able to hear Seung's faint crying. After the front door shut, Hyunseung opened his door a crack, and hearing nothing but silence, walked out. He found the note, and read it.

Hey Seunggie,
I've just gone out for a bit, to give you some alone time. Let me tell you one more time, I really am sorry. I just don't know how to show you that I'm sincerely sorry for what I've done. If you feel like talking to me again, give me a call. I won't come back until you do, because I think its best if you have some time to think things over.
Junhyung

He whimpered, suddenly feeling the empty space that Junhyung was supposed to occupy.

He wasn't going to go far, but staying in the familiar streets kept dragging his thoughts back to Hyunseung. He turned onto the highway, watching the streetlights pass, knowing that he was only trying to leave his regret behind. He stepped harder on the pedal so his feelings would break away. The seatbelt was a safety measure, and just like how Hyunseung's arms wrapping around him made him feel secure. He tugged at it, feeling uncomfortable. He pulled out his phone.

"Can I come over? In about twenty minutes? We have to talk."

"Hey, Hara. Sorry to bother you so late at night."

"Ah, Junhyunggie, it's alright. You know my door's always open to you."

He stepped inside, allowing her to walk around and pull him into the living room. The flames flared up again, tearing down the mental barriers he was building up around his memories with Hyunseung. In a blind moment of anger and guilt, he slapped her across the face.

"Ah, w-what was that for? I thought we had something that could turn out nicely."

"Like you would know. You and Hyunseung never seemed to like each other, and suddenly, you pull me to you. Why? Is it because I was with Hyunseung?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Drop the act, Hara. You knew we would break up eventually, didn't you? Isn't that why you began to ask for more and more of my time so I could be with you?"

"Junhyung, how could you? I would nev-" A steely edge cut into her soft voice.

"You know what, Hara? Forget it. We're through."

She stepped forward, her arm raised in an attempt to hit Junhyung on the head. He turned and pushed her backwards, hard. Her ankle twisted while attempting to regain her balance, causing her to fall backwards. A scream laces the air before she slammed the base of her skull onto the sharp corner of a decorational table. Blood ran down the edge in small trickles before dripping onto the cream coloured carpet, staining it.

Junhung paused, fear crossing his features. He hadn't intended to hurt Hara, despite the anger that still raged on. He contemplated calling an ambulance, but he could see that her breathing was strained, and it wouldn't be long before her last breath floated away from her lips. The ragged wheezing was replaced by an equally agonizing quiet. He felt his way to the front entrance, unable to take his eyes off the body. Then he bolted, taking off before anyone could see him.

Title: Twisted Harmony (Chapter 1)
Author: aryayume
Genre: Romance/Angst
Pairing: Junseung, Dooseob
Rating: M

"Junhyung, where did you put the housewarming present we were gonna give Yoseobbie and Doojunnie?"

"I thought you put it in the carry-bag last night. Is it not there?"

"Ah- wait. Here it is. I forgot."

Junhyung sat on the edge of a chair, watching Hyunseung with a rather bemused expression on his face. Hyunseung was running around the apartment as if he was looking for something, even though all he needed to bring was the present and himself.


"Come on Seunggie. If we don't leave now, we'll be late."

"I'm coming!"

Twenty-five minutes later and Yoseob was staring out of his living room window in boredom. Doojoon took up most of the sofa, staring avidly at the TV screen. His attention was completely occupied by the soccer video game he was playing.

"Junnie, I'm bored. None of them have showed up yet, and you're too busy playing games to talk."

"You know I can talk with you if you want, Yoseobbie- or you can play with me."

Just then, right on cue, the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it, Junnie!"

The front door was swung open by a slightly over-excited Yoseob, who had been desperately trying to find a way to avoid playing games with Doojoon.

"Hi Dongwoonnie! Come in; Doojoon's playing some soccer video game in the living room so don't mind him."

"Ah, I take it that no-one else is here yet, hyung?"

"Mhmm. Thank you so much for coming so soon. I thought I was going to be bored out of my mind."

Yoseob's last statement was accompanied by a theatrical rolling of his eyes, and without further ado, hustled Dongwoon into the living room.

"Junnie, Dongwoonnie's here. Can you pause that game for 30 seconds or something?"

Doojoon dumped his game console on the table and turned to face Dongwoon, slightly annoyed that his game had been interrupted. They awkwardly exchanged greetings and small talk as Yoseob fled to answer another ringing of the doorbell. Junhyung and Hyunseung showed up in the room seconds later, trailed by Kikwang.

"Wow! Your house is so big, Yoseobbie!"

"So uhm, would you like to sit down, guys?"

That was answered by all 6 of them moving around trying to find a place to sit. Then, Junhyung's phone rang.

"Sorry guys, I have to go. Someone wants to see me, but I'll be back later to pick Seunggie up."

Everyone looked at him with a rather dismayed expression as he walked out of the door. Junhyung stood in the middle of the elevator, examining the polished steel sides, trying to ignore the weight hanging from his heart. The basement carpark was quite empty as he made his way to his car, making his footsteps echo uncomfortably loudly. A quiet thump was followed by the ignition of an engine, and seconds later, by the screeching of tyres. He stared absentmindedly at the busy roads as he expertly wove in and out of the heavy traffic. A quick glance reassured him that the bunch of flowers he'd placed in the trunk was still there. Hyunseung hadn't found it, which was very relieving, and surprising considering how attentive he was to small details. Around 20 minutes later he pulled up outside a relatively new apartment building and strolled inside.

He entered an elevator and waited for it to reach the designated floor, all the while twisting the stems of the roses between his fingers. The silvery metal slid apart and a door was thrown open. Junhyung was pulled into a warm embrace and a smile lit up his face as he noted the evident delight when he handed over the flowers.

"Ah. Why isn't Junhyunggie here? Did he forget about me?"

Yoseob grinned as Hyunseung whinged about not being able to go home. Everyone had long gone and he was the last one. There was a knocking on the door.

"I'm so sorry, Seunggie! I um...was er...busy doing something. Yeah. I was busy doing something."

"Well, thank goodness you're here now. I was thinking you'd forgotten about me!" A tinge of annoyance crept into his voice.

"Well, since Junhyung's here, do you want to go? Or would you like to stay the night? Haha, I'm only joking. Bye!"

Yoseob happily waved off his two friends and settled back next to Doojoon, who had fallen asleep on the couch.

"Say, Junhyunggie, what did you mean by you were busy?"

Hyunseung wasn't paying much attention to the rather stiff conversation, but was more focused on the night scene of the city as it blurred into a beautiful mix of gold and light blue.

"Um, nothing. I just had to uh... run an errand for my mom. Nothing much."

"Oh. Ok then."

Right then, a text message came through on Junhyung's phone. Hyunseung reached forwards to pick it up, but his hand was roughly pushed aside and the phone scooped away.

"Eh, don't you want me to read your message to you?"

"Um... no thanks. It's fine. I'm sure it's nothing that important anyway."

Neither of them said much afterwards. In fact, none of them said anything until they got home. Hyunseung's instincts were telling him that something was definitely off with Junhyung, but he couldn't pinpoint it, so he let the thought go.

"Hey Seunggie- I'm gonna go shower first, ok?"

"Yeah sure. Go ahead."

Once the shower faucet turned on, Hyunseung snuck into the room they shared and cautiously pulled Junhyung's phone off the charger. He turned it on, and found part of the message still under the alert section on the lock screen.

'I had a great time today. I never knew that we could get along so well! We should do....'

He slid his finger across the screen and tapped in the password.

Try again...

"Junhyunggie, for how long have you been trying to lock me out? Since when did I start to mean nothing to you? I thought you said you loved me."

The words were barely a whisper. It took all of his self control to not cry out loud. Then, he heard Junhyung shut the shower door.

Title: Twisted Harmony (Prologue)
Author: aryayume
Genre: Romance/Angst
Pairing: Junseung, Dooseob
Rating: M

All he could do was run. Run from the dark, distorted paths of his memories. A faintly lit bridge was the only thing he could see in the foggy depths. An unnaturally loud crunching of splintering wood echoed from behind, and then he was running, without looking back. But no matter hard he pushed himself on, the shadows were constantly wrapping him in their icy grip, dragging him back.

A sharp pain lanced across Hyunseung's skull as he bashed it on the bunk above. A cold sweat had partially soaked through his shirt. Someone moved in the bunk above his, and leaned down over the side. A small mop of blonde hair hung visibly in the dark.

"Are you ok down there, Hyunseunggie? It can't be time to get up already. I heard a bang- did you hit yourself or something?"

"Y-yeah I did, but I'm fine."

How could he tell anyone about his nightmares? Even though he desperately wanted to at times, he just didn't want to worry his friends more than they already were.

"Oh, alright then. Well, I'm going to go back to sleep. You should as well. Tomorrow's gonna be busy!"

"See you tomorrow morning, Yoseobbie."

Once Yoseob had withdrawn, the darkness hung like a curtain, isolating Hyunseung from the world. Every night the demons returned to haunt him, and every morning, he had to pretend nothing had happened. He didn't know how much longer he could go on without breaking.

The passing seconds felt like an eternity, although the rhythmic ticking did provide some meagre reassurance. An hour slipped away, then another. He tried to sleep, but whenever he closed his eyes, the demons were there, always there. A quick glance at the clock showed it was 3 am. There were only another 2 hours before they had to get up. The rustling of bedsheets jerked him fully awake again.

"Hyunseung? Are you awake?"

"I'm so sorry Junhyung! Did I wake you up?"

"Honestly? No, you didn't. But are you feeling alright? You don't look like you've been sleeping well lately. What's wrong?"

"N-nothing. Why do you ask?"

"It's just that you probably haven't slept soundly for the past week or so and I'm slightly worried about your health."

"I'm fine."

"If there's anything you need to say, just tell me. I'll listen. Here, you can come sit on my bed."

A warm surge of gratitude bloomed outwards from within Hyunseung's chest. Maybe he didn't have to hide from his past anymore. Maybe there might just be someone who was willing to help. To listen. To care. He couldn't stop a solitary tear from running down his cheek when Junhyung gently wrapped an arm around his shoulders. There was someone.