cassiopeia ꒱ markhyuck

thirty one

Mark's confession kept Donghyuck up the whole night, tossing and turning as the words played over and over again in his mind, haunting him.

He truly didn't know what to do. He was sure that his choice was clear, that he would just suck it up and leave no matter how much he didn't want to, no matter if the thought of never seeing Mark, Renjun, Jeno, or Johnny again made him feel sick with grief. He had to go, right? There was no other choice.

But the truth was... he did have a choice. Technically, he could just stay, if he really wanted to. Staying would actually be less effort than leaving. Leaving required him to pack all of his things, open the portal, say his tearful goodbyes, and travel back through the void in the space time continuum and hope that his world hadn't moved on without him to the point where he no longer quite fit back into his own life. At least here he had managed to carve out a place for himself, he had friends and a handsome king that wanted to mate with him and provide him with a lifetime of financial security and safety.

But it still didn't feel quite right. He didn't know if there would be mystical consequences for him staying in this world when he didn't belong. He didn't know if he would continue to have to live in constant fear for his life even after they managed to capture the Red Moon. He didn't know if he could bear the weight of the crown, handle the responsibility of ruling over an entire nation and making decisions that would affect the lives of millions of people. He didn't have the confidence to make the decision to stay when he knew that he would have to share Mark's responsibility, and it would be up to him to make sure he didn't screw up and ruin all the hard work Mark had put into his kingdom for the past seven years.

So, when Donghyuck was taking his usual walk in the royal gardens and saw Mark walking up to him with urgency, his mind scrambled, wondering if he was going to have to pull together some excuse as to why he couldn't give Mark a solid answer yet, tell him that he was still considering his proposal. However, when Mark approached him, the anger in his eyes just filled him with confusion and panic, and he stood up straight to face the king.

"Mark? What are you—"

"You're leaving?" Mark spit out immediately, chest heaving from marching all the way to the gardens from the throne room. Donghyuck blinked in surprise, his mind spinning so fast that he could barely string together his thoughts.

"Huh?" was all he could think to say back, eyebrows furrowing in confusion. Mark scowled, leveling Donghyuck with a disbelieving glare.

"Jaemin told me you talked to him about opening the portal back to your world... behind my back, might I add."

The back of Donghyuck's neck burned, embarrassment and shame washing over him.

"That little snitch," the omega muttered under his breath, which unfortunately only served to anger Mark further.

"So it's true then? You're going to leave, and you didn't even plan on telling me?"

Donghyuck pursed his lips, letting out a heavy sigh. "I didn't tell you because I knew you'd react like this, you wouldn't let me even if I brought it up."

Mark paused, inhaling a shaky breath. "I would've been devastated, yeah, and I maybe would've protested a bit, but I would've been understanding if you had at least communicated with me. Were you even planning on saying anything before you left?"

Donghyuck's following silence was deafening, confirming everything Mark had been fearing. Mark's face immediately dropped, his expression looking hurt and betrayed.

"Are you kidding me? You were just going to leave without even saying goodbye?"

"Mark, please, you don't understand—"