CARNAL DESIRES | | NCT

Chapter 12

As his mother left the room, Lucas continued standing within the foyer lost in thought. So lost that he didn't notice the presence of his ethereal mate entering the room.

"I'm assuming that your mother wasn't convinced?"

"No, he wasn't" Lucas said without even glancing at his mate. Feeling the desperation and defeat shooting down their mate bond, Renjun made his way to Lucas and hugged him from behind as he whispered into his ear "It's okay Lucas, we'll figure something out."

"What if I already did ?"

Renjun pulled away to see the other's face, "what do you mean?"

Lucas grabs Renjun's wrist lightly and drags him to the back of the room to ensure that no one would accidentally over hear their conversation.

"What if you and I look for Haechan ourselves?" The fae whispered. Renjun began chuckling, thinking that his mate was rather silly for making a joke at this time, but after noticing the serious look on Lucas's face he slowly said "you're serious..."

"Yes Renjunie, I'm serious. You and I can sneak out...Tonight...find out anything we can about Haechan disappearance and be back before anyone notice." Lucas detailed as he held onto the elf's shoulders.

"Lucas if we get caught your parents will kill you and that's if my mother doesn't kill you first."

"But we won't....not if we have help."

"Who in their right mind is going to agree to cover for us while we look for Haechan??" Renjun shook his head. With a mischievous look on his face Lucas said to his mate, "your father," almost confidently about his suggestion.

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Renjun and Lucas both stood patiently waiting for Renjun's parents to meet them in the dining hall. The two had already formulated a plan as to how they were going to convince Renjun's father to cover them while they sneaked off for the night. The only issue was finding a way of getting King Yuta alone.

As Renjun came up with different scenarios within his mind as to how he could distract his mother long enough for Lucas to speak with his Father; King Yuta and Queen Sicheng entered the room.

"There you two are, I was beginning to think that you weren't coming any more" Sicheng said as he went to engulf Lucas in a tight embrace. How are you holding up Lucas ?" Renjun always thought that his mother was the most selfless and caring being he had ever known. It warmed his heart knowing that his mother didn't ask Lucas that question just because he was his mate; but, because he genuinely cared for Lucas as one of his one.

"I'm okay as I can be," Lucas replied.

With that Sicheng had no response. He couldn't imagine what the young fae might be feeling and the words he might speak may not offer the comfort he was feeling for.

So, instead of offering him words that will most likely do little too soothe the ache in his heart for his younger brother, he simply caresses the side of his face. The same way he does to Renjun to ease his frustration when he doesn't quite grasp a new training technique or to Shotaro when he feels like he doesn't deserve being apart of this family.

He knows in those moments there is very little he can say that will reach his boys. So, he silently soothes the internal pain, frustration or anger they might be experiencing and with Lucas it was no different.

It was his husband who broke the silence and said "And your parents? I know they put on a brave face to the other families and to the public, but how are they really?"

"They're doing the best they can to remain strong. But I can tell they worry."

Yuta nodded, "we all do...but Haechan is smart. And we are doing everything to make sure he comes back home. To your family and us."

Sicheng gave a soft smile to his husband while saying, "we'll find him. Now as difficult as it might be, let's try and eat something. Yuta have you seen Shotaro?"

"No, I haven't. He must be still in his room you want me to grab him ?" Yuta suggested to his wife.

Sicheng shook his head, "no, that's okay, I'll get him. You three start eating this won't take long."

Renjun couldn't believe the luck of him and his mate. This was the perfect opportunity to get his Father on board with their plan. The only set back was they had to do it before his mother got back with his brother. Which meant they had no time to waste. But before Renjun or Lucas could start the conversation with the Elven King. He spoke up and said "You two are planning on looking for Haechan yourselves aren't you?"

Renjun stiffened, taken aback by the sudden question but his mate didn't seem phased at all when he responded, "how did you know ?"

"It's what I would've done. So...what exactly do you need from me?" Yuta gave a slight nod to Lucas.
To say Renjun was in shock was to say the least. It's not often that his father went against the wishes of the Suh family or more importantly the wishes of his mother. But he should've known his Father would have agreed to help from the start. He was a warrior at heart, he more than anyone, he knew what this meant to both him and Lucas.

"We need you to cover for us while we track Haechan." It was Renjun's turn to speak.

"Done. But you only have five hours maximum to do what you need to do. I'm not entirely sure if you two can locate Haechan within that time frame but I'm sure you will find something that can help us locate him quicker." Yuta said while pouring himself a glass of wine. "Lucas, your mother and father always take the last two search shifts of the day. That means if you want to get anywhere in your search, you only have the timeframe of those shift periods." He continued to say, "with that being said, you two should start putting your plan into motion in the next 15 minutes."

"Father, that means we have to leave now. What about Mother ? He'll notice the absence of our presence." Despite his father's willingness and support, Renjun was still afraid of his mother's orders.

Yuta sighed, but spoke nonetheless, "let me worry about your mother...if you really want to do this though I suggest you start moving."

With that said, both Renjun and Lucas jumped up to their feet not wasting another second as they began to make their way outside of the dinning hall. Their timeframe was short, but with Lucas's tracking skills and Renjun's agility, Yuta was positive that they could do it. Still some part of him felt uneasy about lying to his wife and letting the eldest son of two of his closet friends along with his put themselves in a risky situation. Which is why he said what he said next.

"Renjun?" Yuta called out to his son. The young elf stopped suddenly in his tracks to look at his father and said, "yes?"

"Fight with your head-" but he get cuts off as his son finishes his sentence. "But protect with your heart...I know father." It was a saying drilled into Renjun the moment he was old enough to hold a weapon. His father always told him that anyone could fight, it was after all, a learned ability. But a true warrior protects the ones he loves and cares for with his heart.

This is why Renjun and Lucas needed to do a search of their own. It wasn't their minds that wouldn't be at peace, it was their hearts; and Renjun's father was the only one who understood this so inanely. Taking one last look at his father, Renjun took off after his mate to begin what they had planned to do. And as Yuta watched his son disappeared out of his line of eyesight he whispered to himself "5 hours...he'll be back in 5 hours.."