[Fanfic] Tower of God - Heritage of Desire: Chapter 2 (WangnanViole)

De hecho, hace mucho rato que tengo escrito esto y que además estaba ordenándolo para subirlo aquí, pero pos la vida no me dejó hacerlo XD El trabajo es una mierda, sobre todo este año que pasó u.u Pero este mes lo tengo de vacaciones, y quiero aprovechar de escribir aunque sea un poco. Ojalá sacar un cap nuevo aunque sea de este fic, y tal vez terminar un one-shot o algo. Al menos o.o No quiero subirme las expectativas, porque también estoy traduciendo y dibujando harto, además de que también quería releer los cuentos de FNAF y hartas cosas más XD Al menos tengo que arreglar el siguiente cap de esto, que ya está listo hace rato, y subirlo aquí o.o Deséenme suerte XD

*****

Heritage of Desire
by RPMizu
 
Chapter 2: Sights of cuteness

That was the first private talk the two had, but of course, it wasn’t the last. Since catching a glimpse of that awkward yet beautiful smile, Wangnan couldn’t stop thinking about Viole. He started observing every move the other makes, while trying to get his unusual interest go unnoticed, of course. He doesn’t know if he is succeeding though. He feels so foolish every time his heart skips a beat upon suddenly hearing that quiet voice in the middle of a conversation with the other members of their team. If he wasn’t so silent all the time, maybe Wangnan wouldn’t be so nervous each time the other decided to speak up, even if it was just for a little remark.

And maybe Viole was unknowingly decided to give him a heart attack. There were at least two occasions in which Wangnan felt like dying from the strange reactions this mysterious boy provokes in him.

The first happened one day first thing in the morning. Everyone was still asleep, but Wangnan woke up early for the first time in ages. To tell the truth, he just had a nightmare about Nia and woke up with his chest feeling oppressed and a few silent tears crossing his cheeks. Sighing deeply, he went to the bathroom and washed his face, grumbling a bit but fully awake now. Why did he have to still dream about that? Feeling sorry for himself wouldn’t bring Nia back, nor would erase the suffering he went through. Perhaps if he did kill Lurker, he would feel better… No, he was convinced about what he had said, especially what he said to Viole. The thought of Viole made him feel strangely better, somehow. Maybe it was the memory of that tiny, awkward smile…

Suddenly his stomach started to growl, so he went to the kitchen of the rented house. The house Viole rented for them, he remembered himself. How could he afford such a nice house? It is big enough for their whole team of eight people to be able to live in comfortably. Sure, they don’t have individual rooms, but they don’t have to share a room with, like, four people or something. Overall, it’s awesome. It has a big kitchen too, and that’s exactly where he was heading to.

There he was, the reason for his raising blood pressure. Wangnan knew Viole usually wakes up earlier than everyone else and he thought it may be for training, but apparently that wasn’t the only reason. There he was, humming a little to himself (wow, Viole did that?) while making breakfast. It still amazes him that Viole wanted to take part of the housework sharing like it was the natural thing to do, even though Wangnan guessed everyone would have allowed him not to do anything because a) they were afraid he might get mad if he was forced to do housework, or b) Viole really shouldn’t have to do anything since they should all be grateful he allowed them to live in the house he rented in the first place.

But there he was, making breakfast for everyone and seemingly so absorbed in his task that he didn’t even notice Wangnan coming into the kitchen. His singing could use some work, but his voice still sounded so soft and… cute. When Wangnan coughed a bit to get Viole’s attention he saw something even cuter.

“Ah, Mr. Wangnan…! Sorry, did I wake you up?” Not only did Viole call him by that sweet way he has to address people, he was also… wearing an apron. And it wasn’t just any apron too. It was one with an extremely cute design, with little chestnuts on stripes, top and bottom of the fabric. When and where did Viole even get that adorable piece of cloth? So inappropriate for a slayer candidate, yet so fitting for Viole. “…Mr. Wangnan?”

Shit, he has to say something and not only stare like a fool at the bizarre yet adorable sight in front of him. “Ah, ehmm… good morning?” Now that was lame. What was Viole asking him again? Ah, right. “N-No! I woke up on my own just now, don’t worry.”

Viole simply nodded in silence, and continued to work on his chore. He seemed kind of relieved though. Wangnan used to think Viole was a scary monster, but that was far from being true. In fact, Viole is very gentle, even though he is still quiet as hell. So now Wangnan doesn’t fear adventuring himself to go near Viole and watch what he is preparing.

“Amazing, you are even cooking what each of us like. It would be much simpler to just prepare one dish for everyone, don’t you think?” Was it Wangnan’s delirious mind or Viole is actually blushing a bit? It was really pale though, but he thought the pink color was there. If only those long bangs didn’t cover almost half of his face.

“I just… like cooking, that’s all.” That’s all the answer he got, and sadly that didn’t give away if Viole was indeed nervous or embarrassed.

So, he decided to push further. That, and also curiosity took the best of him. “Viole, where did you get that apron?” He needed to know. It was too adorable to let it pass.

“Ah, you mean this?” Viole took the border of the apron between his fingers, distending the fabric. “My Master gave it to me. I told him I was cooking by myself sometimes, and he said it would look good on me.”

Well, that man, whoever he was, was right. It was unbearably cute, and it would be more so if those fricking bangs didn’t get in the way and he could properly see Viole’s face. However, the word he used… somehow made Wangnan think of inappropriate things. Stupid horny brain. “Master? You have a Master even though you are a slayer candidate?”

“Yes, of course. He is my martial arts teacher.”

Oh, so that man is the one responsible for Viole being such a fighting machine. Well, he has good taste. Viole seemed to want to say something more, but stopped at the last second. Noticing this, Wangnan waited for him to continue, but apparently he wasn’t going to say it, whatever it was. Damn, now he will have to live with his unsatisfied curiosity.

Suddenly, Wangnan realized something and didn’t stop to think about his next actions. “Ah, look! You are putting your hair on the frying pan. Careful, Viole.”

His hand moved on its own before he could think through what he was doing. He brushed the hair away from the frying pan and moved all the length of that Rapunzel-long ponytail to the side, over Viole’s right shoulder. He didn’t mean to do something so intimate, to touch his hair without asking permission or at least a warning, but the result was even worse. A pale neck was exposed to Wangnan’s eyes. It was the first time Wangnan felt… temptation around Viole. He is dangerously tempted to touch that exposed skin, to feel it with his fingers, with his mouth. With his fangs.

“Thank you, Mr. Wangnan.”

Viole’s quiet voice made him return into reality and get a hold of himself. What was he about to do? Wangnan shook his head vigorously and thankfully Viole got concentrated again on his eggs and toasts, so he didn’t notice this gesture. Since when did Wangnan have impulses of touching Viole? And so inappropriately, at that. What was he even thinking? But that skin was still there, and Wangnan had to force himself to avert his own penetrating gaze. It was difficult, though. His eyes were glued to the alluring image of that long hair over Viole’s shoulder, exposing that appetizing neck.

He found his chance to get away from Viole, before doing something stupid again, when a yawning Yihwa entered the kitchen. Wangnan ran away into his room again, like the devil was chasing after him, leaving a confused Yihwa and an oblivious Viole behind. Now that he thinks about it, Yihwa sleeps with Viole… So lucky, damn! Ok, he would have serious trouble if he indeed slept in the same room with Viole, considering all the trouble he had that time to not just bite into his neck. Still… she is so lucky. He would gladly take that kind of sweet torture if he could.

The second time was when their whole team decided to go out together to buy their groceries, because everyone wanted different things and they wouldn’t come up with a decent shopping list. For Wangnan, who has been watching Viole closely since they formed their current team (and probably from way before that too), it was obvious that Viole was feeling a little anxious. He was clutching his hands and walked behind all of them, but not that further away either. If Wangnan didn’t know better, he would have thought Viole was afraid of getting lost. But that couldn’t be true, right? Everyone was so absorbed in their conversations that they didn’t even notice his strange behavior, so Wangnan couldn’t ask anyone about it either. He would just expose himself either way.

They bought everything they needed and way more, although they had three or four fights because of it along the way. And then, the kids demanded to stop by an electronics shop on the way home. That’s when it happened. There was a video game console plugged-in in the middle of the store, so people could try games and feel tempted to buy them, and it seemed to attract not only the kids’ attention, but also Viole’s. Prince took the controller first and started stomping goombas in some new Mario game. Miseng stood by his side, cheering on him. And Viole… Viole was standing next to them too, but he was just observing closely, in total silence. Miseng, who was the first one to lose fear around him (they say children are more perceptive than adults with those kinds of things), took him by the sleeve, seemingly breaking the trance Viole was in.

“Mr. Viole, do you want to play?” Wangnan was going to intervene, to tell Miseng not to bother Viole, but the boy didn’t seem angry in the slightest. In fact, he looked confused.

“…Do you play with this thing? How?”

Wangnan froze in place, and Prince only laughed loudly at the unexpected ignorance. “You don’t know what a gaming console is, Viole!? How is that even possible!?” Yeah, it was strange indeed. Maybe Viole didn’t grew up in a rich family, so he didn’t have the chance to get every console like Prince probably did, but even Wangnan, who grew up poor his entire life, knows what a console is at least. What kind of life did Viole had until now? “You are so strange. Hey, since I’m so generous, I will show you. Here!” Prince tossed the control over to Viole’s hands, and the silent boy just stared at it for a few seconds. “There, play by yourself! You’ll love it!”

“But Prince, Mr. Viole said he doesn’t even know what this is. Here, I’ll teach you.”

Miseng took Viole’s hands into hers and helped him start pushing the correct buttons to make Mario jump on platforms and enter pipes. That’s when Wangnan saw it, and it melted his heart. Still serious as ever, Viole looked amazed by the game, like it was a marvelous new experience. Pure-hearted curiosity showed in his face, even with those fucking bangs still covering his eyes, and his lips parted to let out a quiet whoaaa in full awe.

“Fun, right?”

And with Miseng smiling next to him, the sight was too cute for Wangnan to take, so he looked away for a second, only to find Arkraptor also looking with absolute tenderness at the two, although he looked like a dad looking at his children and not like a confused stalker like Wangnan probably did.

“They are cute, aren’t they?” His heart stopped for a second when Goseng appeared by his side out of nowhere, with a teasing smile on her lips. “Miseng has always been cute, but with Viole this is something new, huh?” That’s what she thinks but Wangnan knew better, because he had already seen Viole smiling, and even if it was faint and just for a second, it was the cutest thing he had ever seen. So no, it wasn’t new to him but he was still affected like a fool. “You are staring too much at him, you know? I wonder how he hasn’t noticed.”

“I-It’s not like that…”

“Oh come on, Wangnan. I’m a woman; I easily notice stuff like that. But he is the one being stared at, he should have noticed by now even if he is oblivious to romance as most men are.” What is Goseng saying? Romance? Has Wangnan been seeing Viole with that in mind? No no no no no. Did he? Even if he is cute as heck and has Rapunzel hair, Viole is still a guy. And a FUG slayer nominee, at that. He couldn’t see Viole that way, he mustn’t. “But maybe it is not only technology that he knows so little about, but life itself. Maybe he is just being innocent.”

“S-Shut up, you don’t know what you are saying.”

“Yeah, right. Fool yourself, but you can’t fool me.” With that, Goseng went to talk with Yihwa, and Wangnan prayed she wasn’t telling the girl the same things she told him just now. Wangnan felt his face burning up a little.

And there he is, Viole being completely oblivious to his inner turmoil once again, playing along with Prince, silently but with noticeable enthusiasm, and Miseng cheering on both of them. It not only surprised Wangnan that Viole didn’t know something so basic as to what a gaming console was, but also how well he handled himself with the kids. Viole could be a good dad in the future.

For some reason, that simple thought made Wangnan feel strange. Angry. Why? He shook the uncomfortable thoughts away and came near the gamer trio with his usual upbeat attitude. Better to join in the fun than feeling upset for no reason.

Of course, when they left the store, they went out with a brand new game console in a shopping bag, courtesy of Viole’s seemingly unlimited credit card.

However, it didn’t end there. That heartwarming scene led to another one that very same night. After dinner, Wangnan set up the console and everyone joined the fun in the living room. At Miseng’s petition, Viole bought a game called Fall guys, which was an online battle-royale platformer game, where you play as an adorable fruity-colored jellybean. They decided to pass the controller between all of them after each full round of the game, and after a while everyone had their preferred customization for their jellybean. This event taught everyone that not only Viole didn’t have any idea of what video games were, but Horyang didn’t know much about them either, and was terrible at playing, so the children surrounded him too in order to teach him how to play properly. The ones more easily frustrated were Arkraptor and Yihwa. Especially Yihwa. They had to take the controller away from her in many occasions, before she burned it up. Prince would have been the most easily angered if he weren’t as good as he was at the game, of course.

And surprisingly, Viole learned really fast how to play decently. He started by imitating what Prince did, and soon enough he was doing pretty well, although not as good as Prince or Miseng, who apparently wasn’t only good at card games. But what caught Wangnan’s attention was, of course, how happy Viole seemed, even if his expression didn’t change one bit and he was as silent as ever. There was something soft surrounding him, like the shinsu in the air responded to his new calm and happy state. And it also managed to calm Wangnan’s heart and leave him smiling perpetually.

But all calmness went to trash when, after hours of playing, the other adults went to sleep and only Viole and the kids remained in the living room. Wangnan readied himself for bed, and after brushing his teeth, he went back into the living room to tell the remaining group to go to sleep soon. That was when he found said adorable scene: the three of them fell asleep when Prince was turning off the console, and both kids were snuggling against Viole’s sleeping figure. Wangnan’s movement stopped completely and he only could stare at the image in front of him. “Wah…”

Shaking his head to recover some of his lucidity, Wangnan tried to take the controller from Prince’s hands to no avail, so, frowning a bit, he shut off the console while trying not to disturb the boy that was still gripping at the controller with so much strength. Then, he stopped to stare again. Maybe he should take them to their respective rooms. They shouldn’t sleep uncovered like this, they might catch a cold. Those were the thoughts that lingered in Wangnan’s mind at the time, which were trying to cloud other, more inappropriate ones.

So the first one he took in his arms was Prince, who was already falling off the couch anyways. The next was Miseng, but the little girl was too tightly attached to Viole and didn’t want to let go. “Ok, Miseng, I know Viole must be warm and comfortable, but you have to go to bed.” Wangnan whispered in a slightly fatherly voice, but got annoyed immediately after because the girl still didn’t let go at all. “Please, I don’t want to wake you or Viole up…!” Finally, Miseng let go of Viole and, grumbling a bit in dreams, let herself be carried to her bed. Goseng was already sleeping, so she didn’t noticed how Wangnan tucked Miseng in bed and then ruffled her hair lovingly.

Finally it was Viole’s turn, and Wangnan couldn’t help but gulp loudly upon seeing him again, stretched out on the couch. Viole’s long hair was a mess and he had an incredibly peaceful expression. Wangnan dared to wipe aside Viole’s bangs so he could appreciate his entire face. There it was: a peaceful, almost too innocent sleeping face. It would have been even better if he could see those golden eyes once again.

He took Viole into his arms and carried him to the room he shares with Yihwa. Thankfully, the girl was soundly asleep, so she didn’t see him carrying the slayer candidate on his arms like Viole was his newlywed bride or something. That would have been embarrassing, although easy to explain. He was just trying to be nice and care for his teammates, nothing more and nothing less. So he left Viole on the bed, and gazed at his sleeping figure once again. His slightly parted lips looked so tempting. He really is beautiful, even if those stupidly long bangs insist on covering his face. Wangnan can’t help but swallow loudly again and then trace those lips with the tips of his fingers. “God, Viole…”

Before he could do any more regrettable things (were they?), he jumped back just in time when Viole’s body moved abruptly and a bang almost hit Wangnan straight in the face. “What…!?” When Wangnan managed to focus his sight again, Viole was sitting on the bed, looking on alert and a little frightened. Then, the boy opened his eyes completely and lowered the next bang that was already on his right hand, a hand that then went to his mouth, which was opened in surprise. “Mr. Wangnan…?” He still looked sleepy. He probably reacted on instinct when his lips were touched. Stupid Wangnan. “I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to attack you. Are you okay…?”

Wangnan could only laugh awkwardly. At least he didn’t seem to know what Wangnan almost did to him. What was he trying to do, actually? It was just… his lips looked so appetizing… “Ah, barely, but I’m okay! Don’t worry, I should have expected it. You are a FUG, after all.”

Viole flinched a bit at that sentence, and then hugged his pillow against his chest, like he was protecting himself from something unconsciously. The reaction made Wangnan a little sad, and immediately regretted what he just said. “But… I should have reacted earlier… You carried me here, right? I shouldn’t have fallen asleep if I was with the kids, in the first place. How…?”

Wangnan smiles softly at his confusion. “Maybe you are starting to feel safe around us. I mean, they are kids. You don’t have to be on alert if it’s them, you know.”

“No, I shouldn’t let my guard down, not with anybody.” It felt like Viole was trying hard to convince himself about this, and Wangnan’s smile dropped at that. “But I fell asleep with them hugging me. And then you… You managed to carry me here without me waking up until just now. If it were anybody else, I could be… I would be dead.”

“But it’s me, Viole.” Without thinking it through, Wangnan approached the bed and sat beside Viole, who flinched a bit again but didn’t move. Maybe he was invading his personal space, but Wangnan couldn’t help caressing Viole’s cheek softly with his fingertips. It may have been Wangnan’s misjudgment, but Viole seemed to lean a bit onto his touch. Just the thought of that being possible made Wangnan blush. “We are a team now. You don’t have to be on guard with us.”

“But…!”

With that Viole fell silent. However, Yihwa was waking up, and Wangnan didn’t react on time. Flamethrower, as he called her before they established as a team, was looking at them with an annoyed and at the same time confused expression. “What are you doing…?” She frowned now, completely irritated by the image in front of her. “Mr. Wangnan, did you try to attack Viole on his sleep!?”

“W-What!? No, of course not! Is that what you think of me!?” Surely he was completely red by that time, but Viole didn’t seem to understand the real implications of Yihwa’s words, thankfully. He just apologized again for him being the one attacking Wangnan when he woke up abruptly.

Wangnan didn’t feel capable of handling any more embarrassment, so he bid farewell to his two confused teammates, wished them a good sleep and ran to his own room, where Prince was still in unfathomable slumber. He covered himself completely with his bed sheets and took a deep breath, trying to calm his accelerated heartbeat. If Viole hadn’t woke up at that moment, what would have happened? Wangnan had touched his lips, which were so soft and warm… And then, when he woke up, he looked so afraid of having showed himself defenseless. Wangnan didn’t want Viole to feel unsafe, to feel scared. He wanted Viole to feel secure around them, around him… What kind of life had he been living until now, for him to react that way? Being with FUG must be harsh. So Wangnan set himself the goal to, at least, know more about Viole, so he can try making him feel at home, like he and their other teammates were starting to feel too. Although the memory of Viole looking so adorably vulnerable tormented him all night, he did feel better about the whole issue. Yeah, he knew what he had to do now.

So, after all of those strange sights of cuteness, Wangnan couldn’t help defending Viole when Yihwa started talking bad about him one morning, out of thin air. He was still half-asleep, scratching his tummy while walking onto the kitchen to get some watermelon as Goseng suggested. “I don’t think Viole is the kind of guy who does stuff like that.”

“D-Do you have any proof the rumors aren’t true!?” Yihwa’s loud voice, even if she was speaking politely as always, made his head hurt a bit. Of course she would still be suspicious about Viole, since he is a FUG and she is of the Ten Great Families, but still. Viole doesn’t even leave the house that much for those rumors to be true, in the first place.

“You know, now that I’ve spent time with him, he doesn’t seem bad… He’s gentle…” And cute, but that would remain hidden within his private thoughts. “And he lets us live in the house that he rented! He even does an equal share of the housework!” And he wears that adorable chestnut apron while cooking. “Moreover!!! You’re such a bad cook that he even does your share of cooking! Shame on you.”

“Urgh… That’s true… but…” Maybe he went a little too far with that one, but it’s not a lie, and Arkraptor nodded to every word in agreement, so if Yihwa wants to feel offended, so be it. She is the one being suspicious of Viole, who surprisingly (or maybe not so much at this point) has been nothing but kind to them. He is still too reserved and mysterious, but he is really generous too.

So Yihwa just walks out burning (literally) with frustration, after saying she will be the one following Viole if he was out looking for somebody. Well, maybe Wangnan should be following him too, since he did say he should learn more about the slayer candidate, but he shouldn’t be such a stalker like Yihwa is being right now. He will get his information in another way. So Viole went to meet somebody… Who could it be?

Wangnan spent the next few hours inevitably ruminating about it, to no avail. Of course, he doesn’t know anything about Viole at all, so he can’t even guess who that might be. So he was really surprised (and scared) when a serious yet beautiful girl with an eye patch and a man with an incredibly strong and dangerous aura came home with Viole, even if the man wanted to seem friendly and even brought fruit for them as a gift.

On one hand, poor Goseng is clearly terrified to be in front of these two FUG members. She is peeling an apple with trembling hands, while looking down the whole time. Arkraptor, on the other hand, remained with Yihwa, who was recovering from… passing out? Apparently Viole had to knock her out to prevent her from attacking this man. Well done, because this man is a high ranker and also a FUG. Who in their right mind would try to harm a man like this one? Yihwa, Yihwa would, because she is that stubborn in her anti-FUG stance. And then Horyang was out with Prince, to check on their opponents for the upcoming test. So that left only Wangnan to deal with this situation. Surprisingly enough, Miseng seems completely fine, unlike her older relative. This kid sure is incredible.

So the three FUG members are in front of him right now, each with a plate with watermelon slices. Hwaryun, as the red haired girl introduced herself, remains serene and quiet, while the man introduces himself as Jinsung, Viole’s martial arts teacher. So this is the so-called master that gave Viole the infamous (for Wangnan) chestnut apron. At first, Jinsung asked if they were bullying his precious Viole, seemingly worried about those nasty rumors that are circulating about him. Also, he somehow noted that Viole’s hands were dry or something, and questioned if they were making him do household chores. Yeah, that would be because of him washing the dishes with a few drops of bleach mixed in the water. That made it safer, he had only said, and looked strangely sad when he did. It caught Wangnan’s attention, but he didn’t dare ask about it.

And this whole time Viole remained silent, looking to the ground as if he were utterly uncomfortable with the situation at hand. The reason revealed itself soon enough. Without being asked anything, Jinsung started blabbering about how extraordinary his pupil is. They all know Viole is undeniably more powerful than normal regulars, but this man made it all the more clear. At one point of his enthusiastic and loving monologue, Viole just went out the room. Wangnan saw him leave through the corner of his eye, and lamented (again) that those long bangs didn’t let him see if Viole was embarrassed or pissed off at his master. Probably both.

At some point, Jinsung stopped talking and looked for Viole. And, of course, didn’t find him. “Huh? And where’s Viole?”

Wangnan is grateful he doesn’t have to be the one to answer. “He left… When you started saying stupid things.” replies Hwaryun, while eating her fruit nonchalantly.

“Maybe he is on the roof. He likes to be alone there.” mentions Goseng, now apparently way calmer than before. Maybe seeing Jinsung acting all father-like regarding Viole made her feel safer. Said man quickly says his goodbyes and goes to the roof as told, and Goseng takes Miseng in her arms, caring her to sleep somewhere more comfortable. How can Miseng sleep so defenseless in front of this people? Yeah, now they seem good enough, but still…

Wangnan’s suspicions are confirmed when Hwaryun opens her mouth again, now that they are alone in the living room. “You’re lucky. He decided to let you live. Congrats.”

According to Hwaryun, FUG picked up Viole on the floor of tests, because he is… an irregular. So that’s why he is so powerful and weird, like a monster. And that’s why FUG took in such a young regular. Because, well, he is not a regular, and that means he is capable of… killing Jahad, FUG’s greatest wish, and maybe what Wangnan has to do too. He is not sure right now though. Now all he wants to do is to go up the Tower with his loved ones, with his team, with Viole, and change the Tower for good, as he said to Lurker and Viole that fateful night.

“But… why did he become a slayer? Does he have a personal vendetta against Jahad?”

The answer broke Wangnan’s heart and, at the same time, made him understand all the little bits of information he had gathered about Viole: the lonely stares, the kind yet unwavering distant attitude, his unbreakable resolve to pass the floor tests, and his wish to not have a team at all in the first place. “FUG knows what’s important to Viole. As long as that’s in their hands… Viole can’t get away from FUG. If he fails the test or refuses to live as a Slayer… all of his old friends will die. Viole wants to protect them.” A small, kind of sadistic yet perpetually calm smile appears on the pretty girl’s lips. “Surprised? Did you really think we were nice people?”

At night, Wangnan can’t seem to fall asleep. Jinsung and Hwaryun decided to stay for a while, so he lent his bed to the girl, and he and Jinsung are now staying on the couches in the living room. Staring at the ceiling, Wangnan replays his conversation with Hwaryun all over again. He couldn’t help his outburst. “How could anyone do that!? To use that kind of cruelty to reach your own ends!! Because he is an irregular, you force him to live a life he doesn’t want, and to be hated by everyone!! How could you do that!?” While saying that, he couldn’t shake the image of Viole smiling awkwardly and just for a mere second that fateful night. And he couldn’t forget the sense of loneliness that surrounded Viole all the time. It all made sense now. And it hurts Wangnan to no end.

Seeing he can no longer sleep tonight, Wangnan stands up from his couch, and frowns when he hears Jinsung praising Viole in his sleep. He acts so much like a father figure, yet he is one of the people that are using Viole for their own selfish wishes. It probably confuses Viole as much as it confuses Wangnan.

He decides to go out to the roof, to take in some fresh air and clear the thoughts in his head, but there he finds Viole looking at the fake night sky. “What? You are also awake, Viole?”

“Mr. Wangnan?” That soft yet serious voice makes him nervous once again, although this time is for a different reason. Now that he knows Viole’s secret, he doesn’t know how to confront him, what to say. He decides to joke about his master’s snoring first, and how he was dreaming about his precious pupil.

“The night view is amazing here. It would be nice to have a drink here.” It also feels really romantic, but he won’t be saying that, not when he is alone with Viole. Yet maybe being alone with Viole is exactly what made him think about that.

Wangnan shakes his head vigorously, and then stares at Viole’s profile, serious and lonely as ever. What could he be thinking? Is he missing his friends? Is he desperate to be with them again? Or at least know they will be safe, not in constant danger? If he fails the test… his old friends will die. Hwaryun’s words resonate inside Wangnan’s mind. Viole is doing all of this, being alone and hated by everyone, putting himself in danger in every test, training at the hands of FUG, all of this for those people, who Wangnan doesn’t even know. Viole’s friends.

“Viole.” The boy glances at him, looking kind of curious, even behind those long bangs Wangnan has started to hate. “I’m sorry I thought you were a bad guy. You’re an amazingly good guy.” He doesn’t even explain why he is saying this now, but hopes Viole will understand. “If I were your friend, I wouldn’t regret risking my life for you.” The towers with red crystals on top illuminate Viole’s face, which show his big golden eyes for a second. “Let’s pass the next exam no matter what… Friend.”

As he says that last word, Wangnan turns to look at Viole, who seems utterly confused. Wangnan slaps himself mentally for not being clear in what he wanted to say, even though he meant every word he said. After hearing Hwaryun out, he is sure he really would risk his life for someone like Viole. Someone so kind, willing to sacrifice everything for the ones he loves shouldn’t have to fight alone, shouldn’t have to live in fear and loneliness. Without thinking and letting himself be led by his feelings alone, Wangnan approaches Viole, who still looks confused and curious, and wipes those fricking bangs away from his eyes. There they are: big, bright, curious honey-colored eyes. It feels like they are pulling him in, like magnetism.

So he lets himself be guided by his instincts again, and, before he knows it, his lips are touching Viole’s softly, only superficially. He sees Viole opening his eyes in surprise and staying completely still. After a few seconds, Wangnan pulls away, but the soft, sweet sensation still lingers on his own lips. So, again without thinking it through, he goes out for more: another soft touch on Viole’s mouth, and this time, Wangnan dares to kiss Viole for real. What the heck is he doing? He just said he wanted to be Viole’s friend and now he is kissing him? But Viole is now reciprocating the kiss, his lips imitating the movement of Wangnan’s own, and his golden eyes are closed, like he is anticipating… more. No, that can’t be.

With great regret, Wangnan breaks apart from Viole and stares at the boy’s face. He is looking at Wangnan in wonder, as he doesn’t even understand what just happened. Wangnan doesn’t blame him. He himself doesn’t understand it either, and he is the one who started the kiss. He wants to say something, blabber some excuse at least, but he can’t. He is petrified in place, not knowing at all how to react now that he clearly took advantage of Viole’s lonely state. The boy, however, smiles briefly, faintly, just like he did that night, and Wangnan feels his heartbeat race once again.

It’s a blessing that Yihwa entered the roof right there, because Wangnan didn’t know how to deal with Viole now, and surely wouldn’t be able to resist the temptation to kiss him again if Viole allowed him to. So he went to reflect his own feelings on Yihwa, harassing her with accusations of being jealous of Hwaryun, for example, or how she clearly wanted to be alone with Viole. And the boy just stays silent, apparently too confused or tired to ask anything further.

But it’s a fact now. He is, indeed, head over heels for Viole.

- END CHAPTER 2-