The Way It Burns - BbangNyu

[3]

This wasn't his ceiling, he wasn't at home. Chanhee's eyes widened, pushing himself to sit up, using his arms as support. The sheets covering him were black, the walls surrounding him were dark gray, the clothes he was in weren't his own. His hand brushed through his ruffled blonde locks, thinking back to last night. He barely remembered anything, how did he end up here?

He clambered out of the bed, noticing a piece of paper fly off the sheets. It was a note, a note that reminded him of everything.

I bet you're freaking out but we didn't do anything last night. You passed out so I got you changed and let you sleep. Had to leave for work, you can go whenever you like, I'm only downstairs.

He couldn't deny he felt relieved, he hadn't even gone all the way with Sangyeon yet. Scrunching the paper, Chanhee threw it in the bin. On the way to the bathroom, he picked his clothes off the floor, piling them in his arms. He jumped straight into the shower, annoyed that every scent smelt like wood. He preferred lighter scents, like vanilla, it's more angel like. Once clean, Chanhee walked to the mirror, wrapped only in a towel.

The sight of himself made him scream, he stood for a moment barely breathing, unable to process what he was seeing. Black, burn like marks covered his body. His neck was covered in lip shape marks, he had hand prints along his arms and by his waste, even his lips were completely black. That's when it hit him, Younghoon was a demon.

He had only heard tales of demons, how they prey on angels, desperate to make them unpure. If an angel falls for a demon, they must be 'disposed of'. Chanhee never knew what they meant by this, all he got told was that demons will take control of the angel, turning them against their own kind. He had heard stories of angels killing their whole families, or torturing helpless children.

Chanhee pulled his clothes on quickly, while internally freaking out. He had to hide this, but how? Though the marks would fade eventually, that didn't help him now. He pulled up his hood, covering his neck marks the best he could. There was only one thing he couldn't hide. His lips. Hoping that he could just get home without anyone noticing, Chanhee headed downstairs.

It seemed like a tattoo parlor, yet again somewhere he wasn't allowed to go. He spotted Younghoon behind a divider, assuming he was in the middle of tattooing someone. He didn't know if he should say goodbye, or just leave. He stared for a moment, then feeling a hand tap his shoulder.

Stood behind him, was a tall, beautiful lady, with hair made from snakes. Chanhee jumped, hearing the hissing, this was his first time meeting a gorgon. She didn't seem scary, wearing a gentle smile on her face.

"If you're going out there, you'll need this." She whispered. In her hand was a small pink lipstick, which she opened. She brought it up to Chanhee's lips, covering them in a nice thick coating. "There now you can go."

"Oh um, thank you." Chanhee muttered, making a beeline for the door.

"You're welcome back anytime!" She chuckled, waving the boy off.

He ran through the busy streets, trying to figure out where he was. He ended up getting no where, so he grabbed his phone to find directions. He let his maps app guide him back to his apartment, not bumping into anyone he knew on the way. Once safely back home, Chanhee took refuge in his room. He pulled off his dirty clothes, finding something more comfortable to wear. He put on a white turtle neck, with a pastel pink jumper over the top, and white trousers. 

His messages were full, all his friends were worried that he hadn't shown up for class. He didn't feel like making up an excuse for everyone, so he just text Sangyeon, saying he was ill. They boy sent him a 'get well soon' message, saying that he'll come visit later. Chanhee didn't register what that meant, only agreeing to the meeting with no thought.

 Settling himself on his bed, Chanhee pulled open his laptop. He needed to find out more about demons, the marks, the consequences of what he did. 

'How long does it take for demon marks to go away?'

0 Results

That was strange, how could 0 results come up? that's not possible. 

'Demon marks'

0 Results

This was not normal, he wondered if his laptop was playing up. Grabbing his phone, he decided to search on there instead.

'Demons'

0 Results

"Why is nothing coming up?" Chanhee moaned.

"They've blocked those words." A familiar voice fills the room, making Chanhee's hairs stand on end. The fairy sat herself on the edge of the bed, looking towards the frightened boy. "I know you left last night, and I know whats under that shirt. Why would you be so reckless Chanhee?"

"I- I just wanted to do something for myself. It's tiring having to be the exact way they ask me to be." He replied, getting a bit fired up.

"I get that, but a demon! Do you understand how much trouble you've gotten yourself into?"

"I didn't know he was a demon!" Chanhee yelled. He felt so frustrated, he never thought he'd make such a big mistake.

Eunji bit her tounge, stopping herself from getting angry. "Promise me you'll never do this again." 

 "I promise."

"Good, now the marks will fade naturally in a few days, but i'll try to get you something to speed up the process. You can't let anyone know about this, not your friends, not Sangyeon, and especially not your parents. I can only protect you this much." Eunji explained, patting Chanhee's head a few times.

Chanhee felt more curious than ever. How come his parents blocked out anything to do with demons? What would happen to him if they found out? How can Eunji get stuff to dull his marks? He was desperate to know everything, he didn't know how he'd be able to continue living this sheltered life.