Jeonghan had been off with him since his heat. It was only to be expected, despite how hard Seungcheol had tried to let him down gently. He’d hoped to get things back to how they’d been before, to the strong friendship they’d been building, but he wasn’t going to push it if Jeonghan needed some space.
As the weeks passed, things got… stranger. Jeonghan disappeared right after every meal, ate very little when he was there, and seemed to spend a lot of time walking by himself through the woods. It wasn’t good for anyone to spend too much time in their own head. But not even Junhui seemed to be able to get through to Jeonghan.
“He says he’s fine,” he told Seungcheol when he expressed concern. “But you’re right. There’s something off with him. I just can’t quite put my finger on it. Maybe he’s sick?”
“How? We’re all eating the same stuff, and he hasn’t seen anyone except you and me.”
“Maybe he’s homesick? I mean, I can’t see how. Living here is miles better than home ever was.”
That didn’t seem to fit either, but Seungcheol couldn’t see what it could be. He’d also noticed that Jeonghan was always wearing the soft sweater Seungcheol had gotten him. It made no sense with the weather getting warmer, unless… unless he was losing weight and trying to hide it. It fit with everything else he’d seen.
“Has Jeonghan ever had an eating disorder?”
Junhui looked at him like he had two heads.
“No. Um, not that I know of, at least. He’s never had a huge appetite, but then, that’s omegas for you, isn’t it? Shit, do you think that’s what’s wrong?”
“I don’t know. I could be barking up the wrong tree completely, but I guess we should keep an eye on him, make sure he’s getting enough to eat.”
“Yeah, of course. Should we take him to a doctor? I’ve got some money from that work I did for Bahn. Should be enough for a visit, maybe some medicine if he needs it.”
“Let’s wait on that. And don’t worry about the cost, I’ve got it covered.”
“You’ve done more than enough. He’s my brother.”
“And you’re both working for me.”
They reached an impasse, neither of them willing to back down.
“You’re right. Let’s wait on the doctor. Jeonghan’s never liked doctors.” Junhui snorted at his own words. “Hell, who does?”
Deciding to take a watch-and-wait approach wasn’t easy but jumping to conclusions wasn’t going to help Jeonghan either. If he wasn’t talking to Seungcheol, and he wasn’t talking to Junhui, then he was bottling it all up inside.
Seungcheol watched him pick at his plate over lunch, only eating when Junhui commented about the food doing more good in his stomach than on the plate. As soon as Junhui stood up from his chair, Jeonghan stood too.
“I’m going for a walk. I’ll do the dishes when I get back.”
“I’ll handle them,” Junhui said. “You cleared up after breakfast.”
Jeonghan gave him a small smile and slipped out the back door. Seungcheol cleared his own plate, waited a minute, and then decided to follow. If Jeonghan would just talk to him, he was sure he could help.
It wasn’t hard to pick up the omega’s trail through the woods. He just followed the sound of retching, and found Jeonghan leaning against a tree and emptying the contents of his stomach.
“Jeonghan, hey.” He tried to put a supportive hand on his back, but Jeonghan shied away, wiping the back of hand over his mouth as he wobbled unsteadily.
“You’re sick?” Seungcheol asked, relieved there might be a reasonable explanation after all.
Jeonghan just stared at him with big, frightened eyes.
“Hey, it’s okay. How about I get you some water? Or some tea? And we can sit down and have a talk.” He felt a drop of rain on his head, glanced up at the sky, and grimaced. “Inside, maybe. There’s a storm coming.”
“There’s nothing to talk about,” Jeonghan stammered, pushing away from him and breaking into a run.
Seungcheol wanted to follow, but he didn’t want Jeonghan to feel like he was being chased. Besides, he was running in the direction of the house. Seungcheol would give him some time to cool down and then try talking to him again. If this was something physical, it could be fixed. If it wasn’t, there was still help to be had. It would just take a little longer.
He went to help Junhui with the work, most of which consisted of battening down the hatches in the face of what looked like the worst storm they’d seen since they arrived.
Seungcheol chastised himself for not checking the weather forecast more often. He should have known it was coming; it shouldn’t have been a surprise. The work they’d planned for the afternoon would have to wait.
The delay didn’t bother him so much, though he knew it should have. He was supposed to be working to a timetable, squaring away his business to get back to what he was good at. Instead, it was almost like he was hiding from his life, pretending he was someone he wasn’t. He’d done that to Jeonghan, and now he worried that Jeonghan’s illness was his fault. Had he given Jeonghan hope of a life he could never offer him, and then pulled that hope out from under him? Maybe that had been the catalyst for his illness.
He and Junhui finished up just as the worst of the rain arrived, coming down in sheets that drenched them as they ran across the yard to the house. They were laughing as they reached the kitchen, Junhui shaking the water from his hair like a dog. He grimaced when he saw the trail of water across the floor and yelled out, “Don’t worry about the kitchen floor, Jeonghan. I’ll mop it up in a minute.”
There was no reply.
“Maybe he’s upstairs resting?” Seungcheol suggested. “I’ll go check on him.”
He’d told Junhui about finding Jeonghan throwing up, figuring it was better to share so that they both knew what to keep an eye out for.
Taking the stairs two at a time, he started to feel uneasy.
Jeonghan’s bedroom door was open, and Seungcheol knew before he’d even reached it that the omega wasn’t there. What he wasn’t expecting was what else was missing.
He yelled down to Junhui, “Jeonghan’s gone. And so are his clothes.”
Junhui thundered up the stairs, rushing into the room to stand next to him.
“He can’t be gone. Jeonghan? Jeonghan!”
There was no answer to his shout.
“Let’s split up. We’ll check the house and all the outbuildings. He could just be outside somewhere.”
Junhui nodded. “You’re right. He wouldn’t have just upped and left like that. Whatever about me, he certainly wouldn’t have left without the kittens.” They were curled up asleep in the kitchen, not a care in the world.
“Any idea where he’d go?” Seungcheol asked, remembering the fear in Jeonghan’s eyes when he’d looked at him. “Is there somewhere he’d feel safe?”
“No.” Junhui’s voice caught. “The safest Jeonghan’s ever felt was here, back with your grandfather when we were kids. And here and now, with us. I don’t understand why he’d run.”
Seungcheol scrubbed a hand across his face.
“Neither do I, but let’s find him before he gets too far. With this rain, he’ll get harder to track the farther he gets.”
“Then let’s go. Let’s bring him home.”
YOU ARE READING
𝐆𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐚́𝐧 || 𝐉𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐨𝐥
FanfictionAn omega without a home. An alpha without a family. They need a pack-they just don't know it yet. Seungcheol put everything he had into fulfilling his father's ambitions, almost dying in the process. After a year spent recovering, he has one thing...
