Claimed by the Alpha || Bang Chan

Chapter 20: The True Bond

As the smoke clears from my deadly battle with Taecyeon, Bang Chan falls. "Bang Chan! No!" He lies in my arms, the bloodied wolf's bane dagger buried deep in his side. "it's okay. It's okay, I--" As Bang Chan tries to sit up, he cries out in pain, curling in on himself as the agony of it burns his body. His charred skin sizzles beneath the blade, his screams brutal and deafening. "Bang Chan...stay still, it's going to be okay. If you move, you'll only make it worse, and..." He shakes his head, grimacing against his burning demise. "And what? The outcome will be the same, won't it?" , "Don't talk like that." He looks up at me, forcing a brave smile. "Or what? You'll scold me?" I laugh as my tears splash his bare chest. "Always. Someone's got to put you in your place." He seizes, clutching his side. Blood begins to leak out past the dagger, pouring between his fingers. I reach down and, with a forceful tug, tear a strip of fabric from my dress. I ball the fabric up and press it to his searing wound. But the fabric burns away as though touched by acid. "(This isn't working. I don't know what to do.). Bang Chan, tell me. You always have an answer. What do I do? How can I help you?" He shakes his head, the pain too much for him to bear. He can't even speak. Helplessness begins to seep into me as I stare down at him. It wasn't so long ago that this situation was reversed and I was on the brink of death. My eyes widen in realization. "Our bond." He used our bond to help heal me. My fingers trail along his face, noticing the slickly sallow color of his skin. I close my eyes and focus on the bond. For just a moment, color rushes back to his cheeks, his eyes gaining more clarity. But then it's gone. I take Bang Chan's hand in mine. "It's going to be okay, Bang Chan." , "(Y/N)..." As his voice rasps out my name, I clutch his hands tighter, reaching into myself and finding my bond. "Bang Chan, do you trust me?" , "With...with my life." His voice comes out dry and weak. But it's enough. "Thank you." I close my eyes and press my forehead to his. I reach inside myself, pulling on our bond. I find it in the center of my heart, warm like an ember, ready to burn bright. "I've got you" I think of all the things I've shared with Bang Chan. The arguments, the laughs, the kisses in the dark. It all stakes the ember in my heart, until it grows hotter, brighter, and bursts forth. The warmth comes in waves, passing from my hand to his, each was upon the shore lapping away his pain. Bang Chan gasps, and the color returns to his face, the sweat drying.

"Whoa..." He looks up at me with wonder in his eyes. He squeezes my hand, his voice clearer and stronger than before. "(Y/N)...thank you." I gasp in relief, stroking his cheek, so grateful for the brightness back in his sharp eyes. But his body still shakes. He looks down at his wounds with a grimace. "This won't stop the bleeding, (Y/N). It won't stop the poison." When his eyes catch mine again, there's grave clarity in him. "I don't have a lot of time." he says with a sad smile. "No...please don't leave me...I can't lose you. Not now." , "I'm sorry. I don't want to leave you." Bang Chan looks up at me, his face pale and his brace smile weakening. "It's okay, (Y/N). We did it. Just like you said. Taecyeon's defeated. The pack's united...it...it's finally over." He says trying to catch his breath. "Bang Chan, your pack still needs you." , "No, they'll be okay. They have you." I shake my head, not willing to believe this is real. But he cups my cheek with a cold, shaking hand. "Bang Chan, don't like that. You--" , "(Y/N), please. Please let me say my peace." His voice is getting softer now, even as he struggles against the coming dark. Tears begin to prick my eyes as I stare down into his pleading eyes. "Please." It takes all I have in me, but I manage a nod, and he smiles. "The pack...they...they won't have a leader without me. They need someone to follow. Someone to help guide them." , "They need you, Bang Chan. Please hold on." He shakes his head. "Not an option anymore. Sorry. But you can do it. I know you can." He smiles then, a brief light shining behind his eyes. "Funny, the best thing I ever did...I did when I was a kid." I fight through the tears, trying to keep my voice level as I respond. "What do you mean?" , "Saving you. Helping you get away. It was the best thing I ever did..." He closes his eyes then, drawing one last breath as he lets out his final words. "I love you, (Y/N)..." , "I love you, too. Always." His body goes still then, he links between the two of us fading, growing weaker, until finally, it vanishes. A grief like no other rips through my body, a pain so visceral, it threatens to kill me, too. I almost want it to. Shock courses through my body as I stare down at Bang Chan, lifeless and still in my arms. My eyes flick to the dagger, still lodged in his side, still burning him. Almost in a trance, I grip the hilt and, finally, tug it out of him. "Gone. He's really gone." And as the blood begins to flow freely from his side, so do the tears from my eyes. "Bang Chan..." Suddenly, a hand lands gently on my shoulder, and I glance back to see a familiar face.