𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐦𝐧 • 𝐬𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧

21; emotion

"he only ever mentioned this to me once, and i believe only a select people know." jihoon says. minghao was intrigued.

whatever comes out of jihoon's mouth might be related to the truth behind minghao's position right now. he wished to know the truth. the cause behind seungcheol taking in a random teenager who can take down a bunch of people in one go.

"seungcheol had a brother. seungcheol and his brother both enlisted in the army—but his brother went missing in action after a few operations." jihoon glanced outside. "then seungcheol saw you. says you reminded him of his brother. originally, he planned to only take you under his wing in the military—but when he saw that the light does not shine in your eyes, he..."

he quit being a commander and took me in. for me? why?

minghao, contrary to what he felt earlier, was touched. he knew that this was the correct story to believe. the seungcheol he knew in such a short period of time was nothing like the monster that junhui made him out to be, and even if seungcheol was, minghao realized (exactly in this moment) that he would still be grateful for him.

when seungcheol is here, paintings are everywhere. his company produces art; and is an art in intself. through seungcheol's company, people are able to enjoy art. and through art, people feel something. in a world full of war and brutality, everyone fears that the next second, their bodies would be torn to pieces. they are so afraid of physical pain that fear is all they feel inside.

art. in seungcheol's company, whether you are the artist, the deliveryman, the client—you are able to feel emotions kindling inside of you just by looking at art and seeing meaning behind every stroke of the brush.

feeling emotions from a painted picture is rather enjoyable compared to experiencing yourself getting numb from fear. trust minghao. he had experienced both.

seungcheol brought art to minghao. whether minghao is a talented artist or not, he is still happy to gain the privilege of encountering art everyday. he can look at his coworkers' paintings and find a beautiful meaning hidden in it. he can express himself through colors. he sees, he learns, he feels.

if seungcheol hadn't been here, minghao would forever stay as the shell of what should be a lively young boy. seungcheol helped minghao find his wandering soul to return it to where it belonged.

"and why is that? in what way do i resemble his brother? why would he take me in for the sole purpose that he sees a similarity between me and his brother?"

"stolid, unemotional. that guy rarely smiled. his brother also wanted to become a composer, but he wasn't able to reach his dreams because of the military enlistment." jihoon crossed his arms. "honestly, if someone reminded me of my brother, i wouldn't take them in either. but maybe, seungcheol took you in because you made him feel something strong that he gave up his respectable position in the military."

feel something strong. minghao wonders whether that sentence implied that seungcheol felt the same way about minghao.

and the car stops. now, they have arrived in the palace of miyuni, and minghao doesn't get the chance to reply.

the three artists were reunited as jihoon and prince soonyoung led them inside the palace, inviting them in a room with a furnace. there was a small living room set.

"seokmin," jihoon called. seokmin turns around with his rifle pointed at jihoon unconsciously. "oh—put that thing down. come with me, we'll fetch your luggage. your highness, please go with the helpers for a change of clothes. wonwoo and minghao, stay here and be ready to work."

"oops—sorry about the rifle. i could've shot you accidentally as well, so thank you for reminding me. anyways, i'll see you two later!" seokmin waves his hand at the two artists and flees with jihoon somewhere else. the prince disappeared without a word.

minghao took this chance to talk to wonwoo.

"who was seungcheol hyung's brother?"

wonwoo was surprised for a brief moment. minghao figured that wonwoo did not expect him to find out about this, but it was bound to happen anyway—so minghao expected wonwoo to give him formidable answers.

(or not. wonwoo was in a bad mood earlier.)

"i've seen your first portrait." wonwoo sighed, "that guy you painted, do you know his name?"

"i reckon," minghao frowned. hanseol? hans? honsal? "something with a 'han'."

"seungcheol wasn't aware that his beloved brother, choi hansol, is best friends with the delivery boy in his company. he never set his eyes on the portrait you made of chan's best friend because he was oblivious that his brother knew chan." wonwoo crossed his arms. "and i didn't tell him to look."

wonwoo, with his incomprehensible decisions. if minghao was wonwoo, he would have informed seungcheol! what could be the reason why? minghao could only think of negative reasons as to why wonwoo would do what he did. but, then again—wonwoo would never harm someone genuinely.

"why?"

"if you paint hansol with better colors," wonwoo turned to look at minghao. his piercing eyes were somehow soft. "i will tell him to look."

minghao frowned. "did i not capture hansol correctly? i shall hurry back and redo it for chan, and seungcheol hyung as well. thank you for telling me."

"we see art differently. it is subjective." wonwoo states. "to chan, that painting you gave him will mean something different, and it will mean something different to me too. to seungcheol, that painting might mean different as well. to you; the artist, as you were painting it, the painting will mean something else as well. it is not the essence, or the meaning you failed to capture."

"oh." minghao mumbled. what did he do wrong, then? should he have drawn hansol with a smile on his face?

"your technique sucked."

"...eh?"

"the layers were too heavy. i can tell that you covered up lots of mistakes when i look at the painting from afar. you rushed that painting, didn't you? well, even if you did, you should be mindful of the shades you put on your palette! some patches were slightly off in color!"

minghao's eyes widen for a moment, before his eyebrows raise and a smile tugs on his lips. wonwoo is the same, as always. minghao loved being around a truthful person like wonwoo—who never went below the belt with his reprimanding, unlike his previous owner.

wonwoo chuckled lightly and messed up minghao's hair. "what's important, anyway, is that you did the most important part of your job well. you gave your client what he desired to see. through the strokes of your amateur brush, you made chan feel the emotion he wanted to feel."

minghao wonders if his presence made seungcheol feel what he expected to feel when he took the boy in.